Death Knell Redux
by CritterKid
Summary: AU  How far will the SGC go to get back one of their own.
1. Chapter 1

Stargate SG-1, it's characters, and all related entities are property of Stargate SG-1 Productions (II) Inc., MGM Worldwide Television Productions Inc., Double Secret Productions, Gekko Film Corp, and Showtime Networks Inc./ The SciFi Channel. No copyright infringement is intended. This story is for entertainment purposes only and not intended for commercial profit.

Normally I don't do Alternate Universe fics. I generally put my stories in the little holes between episodes, sometimes using a crowbar to widen the gaps to fit my story in, but content to let the episodes play out as they are. For some reason though the thought for this story got in my head and I couldn't get rid of it.

As always I have no medical knowledge or training. Any information or procedures I use are made up simply to work with the story.

Enjoy.

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><p>"You gave up coffee for your symbiote?" Sam asked her father, sounding slightly stunned. Perhaps she had been spending too much time with Daniel if the thought of giving up coffee was as disturbing as trying to breathe underwater. Jacob nodded twitchily, as if he couldn't believe it himself. "I never knew that."<p>

"We never talk anymore Sam," Jacob told her sarcastically. Sam rolled her eyes and refocused her attention on the power unit when a sudden alarm sounded.

"Lieutenant Glenn what's happening?" Sam asked as the young Lieutenant quickly entered the room.

"We're under attack," he quickly told them. "We just picked up Goa'uld ships entering the atmosphere. Colonel Riley just ordered an immediate evac to Beta. We're bugging out right now." Sam and Jacob jumped to action. Jacob grabbed the prototype while Sam quickly finished adjusting the power unit. "We have to leave now!" he urged them when they stayed in the lab instead of bolting for the door.

"Just give me a second," Sam said, saving up the new settings on the power unit.

"You have the prototype," Glenn reminded them. Jacob could hear the fear in his voice.

"We can't leave this information for them to find," Jacob said sternly heading toward one of the computers. The sounds of the battle were drawing closer. Lieutenant Glenn closed the door, took a deep breath, and stepped over to the computer bank.

"How can I help?"

"Wipe the computer memory," Jacob told him, doing the same thing to the computer he was working on.

"Finished," Sam told them, grabbing the power unit as the last of the computers were being wiped clean. "Let's go," she ordered, but before she could take a step away from the desk a Kull warrior blasted his way into the lab firing madly at everything. Sam was right in his line of fire. She quickly ducked behind the desk, letting it take the brunt of the damage, but the force of the attack caused the desk to flip.

"Sam," Jacob cried out, quickly shooting the Kull warrior with the prototype weapon. It took two shots to kill the monster, but right then Jacob was grateful they had finished the weapon at all.

"Major," Glenn shouted, dropping to his knees by Sam's head. The desk had flipped, pinning her securely to the ground.

"Don't worry Sam," Jacob reassured her. "I'll get you out of here in a jif." But Sam's attention was focused on the hallway outside the shot up door.

"No," she said, forcing the power unit into Glenn's unresisting hand. Jacob quickly saw what she did. Two Kull warriors were steadily approaching their lab. He was momentarily torn between his desire to protect his daughter and his duty to protect the galaxy. Sam took the decision out of his hands. "Run," she ordered, making sure Glenn's fist was tightly holding on to the power unit. "Run!"

Jacob nodded, locking eyes with his daughter one last time before dragging Lieutenant Glenn by the collar and running. He saw the Stargate take a hit and topple to the ground and knew they had to find another way out. Changing course for the tree line, and making sure Lieutenant Glenn was never more than two feet away from him, they ran. They reached the edge of the forest just as their world exploded.

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><p>Jack led a somber rescue team. After ascertaining the Goa'uld had left the planet, more teams had been called in to help search. The joy at finding some survivors hiding in the woods was tempered by the still high number of missing personnel. Specifically Major Carter and her father. Jack would never rest until they found them. He knew the rest of the team felt the same way.<p>

"O'Neill," Teal'c stated and rushed toward a nearby group of downed trees. Jack and Daniel rushed after him, hoping to find their missing teammate. Instead they found Lieutenant Glenn trapped by an uprooted tree.

"Lieutenant," Daniel said while Teal'c and Jack moved the large tree off the unfortunate man's lower half.

"Colonel?" Glenn asked groggily, roused by the activity going on around him.

"You're going to be okay Lieutenant Glenn," Daniel quickly read his name from his uniform, letting a brief wave of regret was over him. How many more victims from this attack would be faceless names for him? Why hadn't he taken more time to get to know everyone who was stationed at the SGC? Teal'c and Jack had managed to get the tree off his legs by then and were checking the young man for injuries, wincing when he saw his mangled right leg.

"Sir," Glenn said as Jack used his belt for a tourniquet. The pain was intense. Glenn shouted as Jack tightened his belt around his wounded leg. He reached his hands toward his leg, but Jack quickly batted them aside.

"You're going to be fine Lieutenant," Jack reassured him before turning to the others. "We'll need to get him back to the gate before we keep looking for the others. He needs medical attention."

"No!" Glenn shouted as loud as he could. "You need to help General Carter." He reached toward his hurt leg again and this time Jack couldn't stop his hands in time. Instead of stopping at his injury his hands kept going down his leg, finally tugging fitfully on something he was laying on. Teal'c quickly pulled out the item.

"It's the prototype," he explained. "General Carter was running with it, but it must have lost it during the blast cause next thing I know is I'm laying on it with the tree on top of me."

"What happened?" Jack asked, taking the proffered weapon. Daniel began pulling out bandages for his deep wound, wrapping the laceration as much as he could.

"Anubis knows we have the weapon. The Kull came straight for us, ignoring everyone else scrambling for the tree line. The self destruct went off and next thing I know I'm trapped under the tree. General Carter tried to get me out, but the Kull was still coming straight for us. I gave him the power unit and told him to run. The Kull got to me, saw General Carter with the power unit, and gave chase." He gave a little laugh. "Guess it's a good thing the tree was there. If it saw I landed on the prototype I'm sure I would be dead by now."

"Glenn," Jack asked, preparing some morphine to ease the young man's pain. "Do you know what happened to Major Carter?"

"I'm sorry Sir," he said softly, unable to look the Colonel in the eye and instead finding his hands suddenly fascinating. Jack nodded, turning to the rest of his team. "Daniel, you stay with Glenn, make sure he gets back to the gate. Teal'c and I will find Jacob.

"Be careful Sir," Glenn said sleepily, the morphine already working. "At least one Kull survived the self destruct. And it's hunting General Carter."

"You did good soldier," Jack told him before nodding to his team. Daniel had already called for a medical team to come remove the injured man. He nodded to Jack and a few minutes later they were continuing the search for Jacob. They followed his trail as it weaved in and out of the forest. Hammond authorized a UAV to help with the search and soon they could hear the little plane zooming towards them before being shot down. They headed for the crash site, knowing the Kull was the only one on the planet who would shoot at the unmanned plane. As they neared the site a massive explosion shook the ground. They ran the last few feet, giving a sigh of relief when they saw Jacob sitting quietly next to the downed plane. But before they could yell a greeting the Kull warrior rose from the mound of dirt pointing his weapon at the exhausted Tok'ra.

"Damn," Jack mumbled as Jacob realized what was happening and slowly moved to the far side of the rocks the UAV was propped on. Teal'c immediately opened cover fire, allowing the older man to get to safety, while Jack doubled back and circled around to join Jacob behind the safety of the rocks. Jack fired on the Kull, wincing when the weapon didn't even slow him down. "I need the…" but Jacob was all ready ahead of him, holding out the power unit. Jack quickly changed out the units and fired again at the Kull. The Kull stumbled and a third shot finally dropped the warrior to the ground. Teal'c came out of the forest and Jack tossed the prototype to him before turning back to Jacob. "Jacob?"

"I'm fine Jack," he reassured him, although from what Jack could see he most definitely was not fine. His disbelieve must have shown on his face. "I will be fine," he amended, "it's nothing Selmak can't handle. I just need to rest." He slowly lowered himself to the ground.

"Jacob," Jack began hesitantly. Jacob looked up, the pain in his face clearly showing. Jack knew that kind of pain. The kind that wasn't physical.

"Sam was trapped in the initial attack," he told him, knowing Teal'c was listening a short distance away when his spine straightened. "I had to choose between her and the weapon. She choose the weapon." Jack nodded in understanding. "There was a few minutes before the self destruct exploded. There's a chance someone else was able to free her."

"We did locate survivors," Teal'c told him from his position over the fallen Kull warrior, "however Major Carter was not with them." Jacob's head slumped in defeat. His last hope, long shot though it was, was now gone. The three men stood quietly, silently mourning their friend.

"We should get going," Jacob said after a few minutes. He was still a soldier and he still had a job to do. Sam would come back from the dead and kick his ass if she found out he didn't do it because he was brooding over her. The time to mourn was later. "There's no way to know how long Anubis will stay away, but I'm sure he will want to recover his Kull warriors."

"We're already on it," Jack said helping the older man to his feet. He handed the prototype to Jacob as he and Teal'c grabbed the arms of the dead Kull.

"Damn," Jacob swore as he got a good look at the weapon he had spent the last few weeks working on. Jack looked up curiously. "It must have been damaged in the explosion. It fried the power unit." They began their hike back to the Stargate, Jack and Teal'c dragging the dead Kull behind them. It took such effort that Jacob was easily able to keep up with them even with his injuries. "We'll have to start the whole calibration process over again."

"Isn't there a record?" Jack asked.

"Yes," Jacob sighed, "on the hard drives we erased before the whole place went to hell. And on the crystal which I had."

"Had?" Jack asked. Jacob grimaced and shook his pocket, the unmistakable sound of rattling emerging. "How bad?"

"I don't know," he admitted. "I never really had a chance to look with that thing chasing me. And I don't think I want to risk taking it out of my pocket and dropping a piece with Anubis knowing about this place." Jack nodded in understanding.

"We'll check it out when we get back to the SGC." Jacob nodded as they continued their trek to the Stargate. They were quickly joined by the other search teams, who were able to put the dead Kull on a stretcher, allowing them to move much quicker. In no time they were back at the Stargate. Jacob went through to the SGC with the Kull, while Jack and Teal'c stayed and oversaw the last of the search operation. By nightfall the search and recovery was complete. Jack ordered his men home until it was just him and Teal'c on the planet. He stopped for one last look at the destruction around him. "It's all different now Teal'c," he said quietly, finally letting the grief show through the military mask.

"Indeed," Teal'c agreed. The two men stood there for a few minutes before turning and stepping into the wormhole. Both knew they would never return to the place where Samantha Carter died.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer and notes on chapter 1.

Enjoy.

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><p>They stepped out of the wormhole and into another war, only this time it was a war with words. Daniel met them at the ramp. Jacob had obviously told him about Sam because Jack could easily tell his friend was upset. The team shared a moment before Daniel rushed up to the conference room, desperately trying to salvage the alliance between the Tok'ra, Jaffa, and the SGC. Jack let him go without argument, knowing diplomacy was Daniel's element and also knowing they needed this alliance if the galaxy had any chance of surviving. They would grieve together as a team later, when the fallout from this disaster had finally calmed down.<p>

Teal'c headed for the door and Jack automatically followed him. He didn't know where the Jaffa was leading him, he understood very little except for his own grief right now. He only realized where he was when Teal'c put his shampoo bottle in his hands. He quickly got undressed and stepped under the hot water, noticing Teal'c and many of the search teams doing the same and refusing to acknowledge the muffled cries coming from the different stalls. He finally let his own tears fall, mixing in with the hot water while his own cries blended with the rest. Today no one would hold tears against anyone else.

He got out of the shower refreshed, as if he were able to wash away more than just the dirt from the planet. He quickly dried off and dressed, noticing Teal'c calmly waiting for him by the door. He nodded at the Jaffa's silent question. He wasn't fine but he could cope until this latest crisis resolved itself. Looking around at the other men emerging from the shower he could tell they felt the same way, ready to take on this latest test before losing themselves to their grief.

Teal'c fell in step as he made his way to the infirmary. He was able to focus on the somber mood of the base now. He knew the base rose and fell with the success and failures of the SG teams, and was often amazed how quickly news of offworld situations, good and bad, spread through the halls. But he also knew never before had so many people been personally touched by offworld tragedy. This disaster touched everyone from the SG teams down to the kitchen crew. He made a mental note to talk to General Hammond about suspending operations for a few days to let everyone get past the shock and start accepting what happened before rushing out again.

As it was there was very little for him to do over the next few days. The base leadership stepped up, keeping their department focused and on task while Anubis achieved one of his biggest victories to date. Despite their best efforts, nothing Daniel, General Hammond, Bra'tac, who arrived later that day when news finally reached him, Jacob Carter, or Selmak did could keep the alliance together. The best they could do was stay on friendly terms as the Jaffa and Tok'ra pulled away from the Tau'ri.

The investigation into the tragedy was as futile as the desperate attempt Daniel had given to keep everything together. Unable to tell definitively who had leaked the location of the Alpha site, Earth's own politicians used that as proof that we should never trust aliens and the best course of action was to look after ourselves and let the galaxy go screw itself. Finally though the mayhem stopped and the SGC was able to hold its memorial service. Jacob stayed for the memorial, honoring his daughter as well as the other men and women who died that day, before leaving to rejoin the Tok'ra. He hoped he would be able to rebuild some of the bridges Anubis had shattered that day.

Slowly operations at the SGC returned to normal as well. The scientists were disappointed to discover the power unit Sam had been working on was completely useless. Retrieving the recorded information from the shattered crystal had been equally fruitless. The little tidbits they could recover held no meaning for them. They're only motivating factor was the knowledge that Sam had gotten the device to work, as evident with the dead Kull in the lab.

The SG teams continued to ruin Anubis's plans whenever they could. They were surprised to find he was still using Jaffa as the majority of his forces, having expected him to go with the Kull warrior now that he had the advantage. It was a few months after the tragedy that SG-1 finally found themselves coming into contact with Anubis's Jaffa again.

SG-1 had been sent on a first contact mission. The initial recon of the planet by SG-16 showed high concentration of Naquadah and a native population. Earth still desperately needed Naquadah so SG-1 was given the mission to establish friendly diplomatic relations and negotiate a trade deal if possible. Daniel was negotiating with the chief, having struck up an immediate friendship, while Jack and Teal'c were helping out in the village or entertaining the children. They had yet to replace Sam since all the scientists were needed to calibrate the power unit for the prototype. Also there were some problems producing the damn thing in the first place. Jack never realized how much they were depending on the Tok'ra to actually make the stuff.

The mission was going perfectly until the Stargate opened and Jaffa came flooding out. SG-1 was able to evacuate the villagers to some nearby caves and then led the Jaffa away from the frightened people.

"They are doubling back O'Neill," Teal'c told them, firing his staff weapon on the group of Jaffa taking pop shots at them from their own well covered position down the hillside.

"They're trying to surround us," Jack commented, adding his own fire with Teal'c's staff. He felt no satisfaction when one of the Jaffa cried out and fell to the ground. They ducked behind their own rocks as the Jaffa fired on them again. "Daniel?"

"What if we cut through the river?" he suggested.

"You're leg going to last that long?" he asked. Daniel glanced down at his injury. One of the staff blasts had grazed him as they were running for the hillside. The injury itself was small, probably not even earning him an overnight stay in the infirmary, but it was placed right where it made running hell. He steeled himself then nodded to Jack. "Let's move." They had only taken a few steps when the other group of Jaffa emerged to their left much sooner than Jack had thought they would. Staff blasts and bullets flew everywhere as both groups fought for survival. Nobody saw the small ball roll toward the SG team until the blinding light exploded.

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><p>Teal'c awoke first, fumbling blindly until he was sure his teammates were with him. He put himself in a light state of Kelnorim, hoping his meditation would help restore his blindness and listening intently for any noises. A few minutes later he heard the sounds of the others waking up.<p>

"That just gets better and better every time," Jack grumbled as he woke up. He sighed as he opened his eyes to darkness, panic settling in until he remembered this particular side effect of the stun grenades. "Teal'c? Daniel?" Jack's flailing hand landed on the Jaffa's leg.

"I am here O'Neill."

"Me too Jack," Daniel said from Teal'c's other side.

"How's the leg?" Jack asked as he pulled himself into a sitting position.

"Still hurts," Daniel said. They could hear him wince as he probed the wound. "But I don't think its any worse."

"I'm checking it as soon as I can see again," Jack told him.

"Looking forward to it," Daniel answered, cautiously using his hands to find the nearest wall. He sat up, shifted back, and laid his back against the wall with his injured leg in front of him. He sighed contentedly as Jack did the same thing.

"So prison?" Jack asked.

"Yep," Daniel answered.

"Anubis," Jack asked dryly, getting as comfortable as he could.

"Indeed," Teal'c responded.

"First one to see gets a cookie," Jack said as the team lapsed into silence. Daniel would occasionally breathe in sharply as his fingers explored his injury, but other than that the team made no sound as they waited for their sight to return. Their ears told them plenty though. They knew there were other prisoners around from the constant moans. Jaffa patrols constantly shifted prisoners about. Some begged for their lives while others professed their innocence. Others simple let themselves be dragged, though if that was their choice or they were just unconscious the team couldn't tell. Finally the Jaffa came to their cell. Jack, Teal'c, and Daniel all started shouting at them. It took them a few minutes to realize the Jaffa weren't coming for them, but for someone in a cell nearby. They could only listen as the door creaked open and the Jaffa struggled with more chains than one person could possibly need before dragging their neighbor down the hall. Jack didn't even know they had a neighbor, nothing had been heard nearby since they woke up. He briefly wondered if whoever that was had died, then wondered if that was lucky or not.

A few hours later they're sight had finally returned. Jack had followed through on his promise to look at Daniel's wound. Thankfully it appeared that the Jaffa hadn't damaged it more. Daniel looked at this in good light. At least now he was resting his injury, something Janet would have told him to do anyway, although every few minutes he flexed his leg to keep the muscle from stiffening up.

The visual and physical exam of their cell didn't amount to much. Rough stone walls made up three walls, while the forth was a set of bars looking into the hallway. Opposite them they could see a similar cell, the one the Jaffa must have taken the prisoner from before. They could see several sets of chains attached to the walls and hanging from the ceiling. Glancing around they realized their own cell had chains too, but they were currently secured on the ceiling far from the grasp of the men inside. Jack was glad they didn't have to worry about the chains too. Light filtered in from several small dingy windows up by the ceiling, but there was no way they could reach them and they were too small to escape from if they suddenly could. With no hope of escaping the cell, the team settled down to wait again.

The Jaffa continued to shuffle people in and out of the cellblock, but they had left SG-1 alone for several hours after they had regained their vision. It was a surprise when they finally did come for them. They were manhandled through the cellblock and into the interrogation chamber. But they weren't the only ones there. They froze when they saw Sam Carter hanging in chains against the wall. The Jaffa took advantage of their momentary shock to secure them in their own chains across from the woman they thought had died. Only when Sam cried out, a small gasp barely audible, did they see the whole scene before them.

A Goa'uld was using the hand device on her. A pain stick, whip, several knifes, and glass bottles sitting on a table a few feet away told Jack exactly who their guest was. "Baal!" he shouted, desperate to get the Goa'uld's attention away from the woman he thought he lost. It worked. Baal turned his back on Sam, turning toward them with an evil smirk.

"Jack," he greeted warmly as if he was an old friend who just popped in to say hi. Jack tried to glare at the Goa'uld, but his eyes kept coming back to Sam who hung limply to the wall, the chains the only thing that was keeping her upright. He followed Jack's eye line to Sam, glancing between them before speaking again. "Reunions are so wonderful. Don't you agree Samantha?"

"Go to Hell," Sam told him, finally finding enough energy to open her eyes and glare at the Goa'uld, though the rest of SG-1 could see her eyes widen momentarily in surprise. Baal merely smirked and moved to the table, fingering the knives lovingly. With nothing between them, the guys couldn't stop looking at their teammate and Sam couldn't keep her eyes off her guys. Jack could tell she'd been tortured savagely by Baal. Sam didn't have any energy to try to conceal her injuries, nor the ability, the chains keeping her form much more exposed than she would have liked. When he finally locked eyes with her he was surprised that he didn't see hate and fear in them. He had left her behind and hated himself for it.

"Now Samantha," Baal said, taking advantage of her concentration lapse to thrust the pain stick into a knife wound on her abdomen. Sam jerked in surprise, her body seizing with the charge being sent into it. Jack was proud when she didn't scream though, just allowing a gasp past her throat. Baal was furious with her lack of response, but quickly covered it up by trading the pain stick for his knives. Giving her no time to recover he quickly he leaned close to her ear, whispering to her lovingly, though it was loud enough for the guys to hear. "We've had so much fun together Sam, but it is rude to ignore our guests." He held the knife up for her to see before he started tracing patterns on her bare skin. "Jack never did get to play with this toy," he told her quietly, occasionally pressing the blade hard enough that it drew blood. Sam gasped each time biting her lip to keep from crying out. "I never was able to get the right balance between the knife and the acid. Now that I have perfected that rare balance I think Jack will like it as much as you do."

He stepped over to the other side of the room where the three guys were chained. Stepping in front of Jack he threw a casual glance over his shoulder. "Unless there's something else you want me working on instead?" Sam kept silent and Baal looked back at Jack. "Guess I'm free." He drew his hand back to stab the Colonel.

"Wait!" Sam shouted from the other side of the room before Baal could complete the blow. He smirked as Sam started rambling of numbers. "Eight, three, one, four, nine, five, seven."

"Is that the wave amplitude of your prototype weapon?" Baal asked smugly, the look of triumph in his eyes. He was staring at Jack, proclaiming his victory with his eyes.

"Actually," Sam said proudly, "I was just making them up at random. They don't mean anything." The triumph turned to rage instantly. Baal was at her side in seconds, his hands around her neck shaking her back and forth. She locked eyes with Jack and smirked before her eyes closed and she was gone. It took a few minutes for Baal to realize she had died, and when he did, he screamed, taking his rage out on her dead body, punching and kicking and smashing her head against the wall until he calmed down. The guys could only watch as her body was brutalized. Finally he did calm though, motioning for his Jaffa. They carried her body across the room to a waiting sarcophagus. Baal turned his attention back to SG-1 when a new Jaffa entered the room.

"My Lord," the Jaffa bowed deeply, "Lord Anubis is on his way." Baal continued staring at them, obviously deep in thought. Jack was surprised when a touch of fear came over his face, but just as quickly it was gone.

"Take them back to their cell," he ordered as he left the room. The Jaffa forced them back to their cell, but this time they were fighting back with everything they had. Eventually they simply zatted their prisoners and moved them while they were helpless. Once in their cell the Jaffa left again.

"Sam is alive," Daniel said disbelieving.

"It would appear so," Teal'c told him, helping him over to the wall where he could rest his leg again.

"How?" he asked, wincing at the pain in his leg though that was nothing compared to his own heartache.

"How is unimportant right now," Jack spoke up for the first time. "We'll figure out how after we get her safely back home. What's important now is making sure she gets home."

"Indeed," Teal'c agreed as a commotion drew their attention. The Jaffa were dragging a kicking and screaming Sam down the hallway. They were carrying her by her arms and legs, but she was bucking her body and thrashing her head in a way that made each step difficult.

They entered her cell, one Jaffa rushing in to get the chains ready while the four carrying her stuffed themselves through the opening. They quickly attached the chains to her wrists, wrenching her upper body up as soon as she was secure. Meanwhile they had also attached heavy chains around her legs, anchoring them into iron rings set low in the wall. The Jaffa let go and stepped back at once, but not quick enough as one of her feet connected with the pouch of one of the Jaffa. He fell back with a grunt while everyone watched the upper chains hoist her body up while the lower chains kept her stubbornly on the ground. Only when her body was stretched spread eagle in the middle of the cell did the Jaffa finally leave.

"Carter," he asked quietly. For a few seconds she didn't respond and Jack took that time to study her body. The sarcophagus did its job. The only sigh of the torture he knew she went through was the cuts and bloodstains on her clothing, what little there was left after all this time.

"Is this real?" she asked in a small voice. His eyes locked on hers, his hand automatically reaching out for her through the bars.

"I'm real Sam," he told her gently. She nodded, tears pouring down her face. "I will get you out of here Sam."

"I know you will." The power behind those words hit him like a physical blow. Her eyes slid up as her body finally demanded the rest it needed.

"Jack?" Daniel asked panicking as Jack slowly lowered his arm.

"She passed out," he told them, backing up until he was by the wall. He slowly let himself collapse while Teal'c took his place by the bars. Slowly his world shrunk until all he could see was the woman hanging in the next cell. What had he done to her?

* * *

><p>"O'Neill." Jack jerked awake at Teal'c's warning. He looked past the bars to the hallway next door, expecting to find a horde of Jaffa bearing down on them. Instead he saw the lone figure hanging from the chains and memories rushed over him like cold water. "Daniel Jackson."<p>

"Teal'c," Daniel said groggily. Jack reached over and gently shook the younger man. He knew instantly when Daniel remember what had happened. His eyes shot open and he scrambled to his feet. "Sam?" he asked as Jack helped him up.

"I believe Major Carter is waking up," Teal'c told them, his eyes never leaving her face. They quickly joined Teal'c by the bars, willing Sam to wake up. They could see her eyes fluttering beneath her eyelids and soon she was opening her eyes.

She looked around quickly recognizing the cell she had been kept in since she got here. It took a few minutes to remember the latest events. When she lifted her head she saw the three most important men in her life grinning at her. She couldn't stop her own smile from forming at the sight. "We're real Carter," Jack reminded her, "and we're gonna get you out of here." She stared at them until she realized something.

"Daniel, sit down before you open that wound completely." Daniel looked down, surprised he didn't feel his wound reopen. Sure enough fresh blood had started to slowly soak through the makeshift bandages Jack had applied. Teal'c helped Daniel sit back against the wall, he refused to sit in any position where he couldn't see Sam, and proceeded to tear up his own shirt to make more bandages.

"You didn't think we were real?" Jack asked, trying to break the silence that was turning uncomfortable.

"Baal's tried hallucinogenic drugs a few times," she explained. Her eyes narrowed at the thought he was trying the drugs again, but then she remembered them being there before she died. Jack quickly saw where her thought were going and tried to distract them.

"What does he want?" he asked.

"Information on the prototype weapon," she told them.

"No wonder he didn't ask us," Jack joked. "All I could tell him was that it worked and soon we will be handing his little Goa'uld ass back to him on a silver platter." She smiled, banishing any thought she had that this was another tricks of Baal's. No matter how hard he tried, he could never get the Colonel right. "How are you doing Carter?"

"I'm hanging in there," she responded before grimacing at her own bad pun.

"Seriously Sam," Daniel piped up from his corner of the cell. "You're channeling Jack now? Isn't one smart ass on the team enough?" Sam laughed then instantly regretted it when fresh waves of pain spread through her abused body. A small bead of blood streaked down her arm where the manacles had broken her skin.

"I'm sorry Sam," Jack spoke quietly. "I should have known you weren't dead." Daniel was nodding his head in agreement while Teal'c looked like he would gladly accept any retribution she felt she deserved.

"Listen to me," she spoke confidently, needing them to understand. "I don't blame any of you." She locked gazes with the three men as she spoke until she saw understanding fill their eyes. She also knew it would be a long time before they accept what she was telling them. "I went back to the Alpha site. I saw the destruction. I do not blame anyone for assuming I died in that blast. I would assume the same thing."

"How did you survive?" Daniel asked. Sam got a faraway look in her eyes.

"I remember one of the drones blasting its way into the lab. The desk was flipped by the blasts and I was trapped underneath. I could see more drones heading to the lab. I gave the power unit to Glenn and told them to run." A sad look came across her face and she stared intently at Jack. "Sir," she asked quietly, "my father?"

"He's fine." She let out the breath she was holding and he realized she must have feared the worst. She gave herself a moment then finished her story.

"The drones started following them but one of them stayed behind with me. I thought for sure he was going to kill me when he suddenly grabs the desk and frees me. The rings descended before I could try to escape. We were deposited on the Al'kesh just as the self destruct went off. I remember it lost power momentarily. I was hoping it would crash, but they were able to restore the power and brought me here." She stopped for a moment, a dark shadow crossing over her face. "Anubis wanted more than the weapon destroyed. He wanted information on how we came up with it. They took me figuring I had all the information Anubis wanted while they left the Kull on the planet to ensure the destruction of the weapon and anyone protecting it." Jack knew there was more to the story, like everything she had been through since she got here, but he could also see she was struggling to stay awake.

"Get some sleep Carter," he ordered gently. "Let us worry about getting out of here."

"Deal," she agreed quickly, telling Jack exactly how tired she was. A few minutes later she was asleep. The rest of the team soon followed her example. They would all need their rest if they were going to escape Baal and his hellhole.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer and notes on chapter 1.

Enjoy.

* * *

><p>Sam quietly laughed as the guys told her what had been happening around base since she had been captured. They had been doing their best to distract her from the pain and discomfort of her position. Every so often their eyes would dart to her arms or legs and the streaks of blood that were forming there. Sam wasn't too concerned about them though, not with Anubis on his way. Something much worse than metal rings slicing through her skin was coming.<p>

"Carter," Jack spoke up, seeing the dark look coming over her face again. "You are so going to settle this debate once and for all." They had started their long ongoing debate about which place was going to replace O'Malley's. It had been years since they trashed the bar, and the bar had changed hands a couple of times, but they were still banned. They had been looking for a new place on and off since that incident but had never found a place they had all agreed upon. A few weeks ago Jack had found another place to try.

"Connelly's," she said suddenly. "Sounds like they have the better desserts."

"But they don't even have chocolate cake," he whined. She smiled at him and he eagerly returned it, glad to see the dark thoughts chased away for the moment. The moment was interrupted by the sound of people marching toward them. Sam closed her eyes, steeling herself for what she knew was to come while the rest of SG-1 looked out in confusion. It was not the sound of Jaffa marching towards them. They looked on in terror as Anubis himself rounded the corner, surrounded by Kull warriors. They could see Baal standing nervously in the background along with other Goa'uld they did not know.

"Newbie," Sam spoke up, opening her eyes as Anubis drew level with her cell. "The other System Lords aren't being mean to you again are they? I already tried calling their mommies to make them be nice to you." The team looked at her incredulously. She ignored them, instead focusing her entire being on Anubis. Anubis simply returned the stare coldly.

"Soon they shall be begging at my feet as you do."

"The only begging I do is for you to get a life," she replied sardonically. Jack winced with the others, suddenly realizing what she was doing. She was keeping his attention firmly on her to spare them. He started shouting his own obscenities at the Goa'uld, terrified yet glad when he turned to face them.

"I must admit I am torn regarding our relationship," he told her though he kept his gaze on the three men before him. "I was planning on simply killing you after I extracted the information I need."

"Been there," Sam interrupted him, "done that. Didn't work so well for you." Anubis laughed; the sound sending shivers down everyone's spine.

"We shall see," he told her, turning back toward Sam before continuing. "I thought about breaking you for my own amusement, before I realized that the extraction process would do that for me. You would simply be another broken shell for me to discard." He turned back to the other cell. "I admit the thought disappointed me, but fortune arrived with the capture of your friends."

He turned from the men again and entered her cell, circling behind her to where they both had a clear view of their audience. He ran his gloved hands up and down her bare arms lovingly while keeping his sight on the men of SG-1. She jerked, instinctively trying to get away from him. "You shall watch helplessly as I break your teammates," he told her coldly, "and then they shall play with you for my amusement until you no longer infuriate me. Finally, I will have you kill them before I finally accept your death at my hands."

"There's just one small problem," Sam said, locking eyes with each of the men that told them she trusted each of them with her life. Satisfied she turned her head, staring Anubis down as he turned to watch her. "You're plan starts with breaking me. We both know you can't break a dog." Anubis roared, his hand soaring through the air in anger, slicing through the thick chains as easily if they were butter. Sam hit the ground hard, but was back on her feet almost immediately. She wasn't fast enough to escape the Kull warriors though, who grabbed her struggling form and followed Anubis back outside the cell block. The team could do nothing when a few seconds later Sam's piercing screams filled the night.

* * *

><p>Time stood still. Hours, days, minutes, seconds all fought for dominance in Jack's mind. All he could focus on was the sound of Sam screaming. A few times it would stop and Jack would hope she finally fell unconscious but then the screaming would start up again. The last time this had happened he wished she really had died that day on the Alpha site. Then she wouldn't be enduring such terrible agony now. Looking around he could see Daniel and Teal'c hadn't fared much better.<p>

The screams eventually stopped and the Kull brought her back to her cell. They chained her again, stretching her body out even though she obviously couldn't even try to escape. Baal came in a few minutes after the Kull left, studying her stretched out body.

"What is the power configuration for the weapon?" he asked softly. The team was surprised when she lifted her head to glare at him.

"Go to Hell," she choked out. Baal immediately backhanded her, the blow landing on her temple cracking her head to one side. Baal started pacing the cell. Jack gasped as he got his first look at her head. A large gash stood just behind her temple. It was deep, but not bleeding profusely as Jack had expected. In fact the only part that was bleeding was where Baal had just hit it. Jack cringed as he finally understood. That is where Anubis had used his mind probe on her.

"You can't resist forever," Baal spoke again, but in a softer voice as if he truly regretted what was happening.

"I'll resist till I'm dead," she forced out of her parched mouth. Baal raised his hand again, this time as if to caress her face, but thought better of it and reached for a bottle on his belt instead. He took a swig then carefully helped Sam take a few sips before throwing it through the open door to their cell.

"Water," Teal'c declared, after grabbing the bottle and sniffing it carefully. Baal nodded slowly to the men before turning to Sam again.

"He will get what he wants eventually, even if you continue to defy him. It's only a matter of time. Wouldn't it be better to have an ally in your back pocket when the time comes and he strikes? Tell me the information he wants and I promise I will do everything in my power to spare your planet when the time comes."

"Like you'll help us when the time comes?" she challenged him. She could feel her body shutting down. "Like you'll be the one we call when we need help?" She tried to see his response but her body wouldn't cooperate and she sank into darkness.

"I wish I could be," he said softly as he left the cell.

* * *

><p>"Sam," she heard as she forced herself back through the darkness. She shook her head to try and clear some of the fuzziness away, but only succeeded in causing more pain to shoot through her body. The guys continued to encourage her and she raised her head to thank them, only to let it drop a second later.<p>

"What's wrong Carter?" Jack asked, immediately noticing something was wrong. Sam merely shook her head.

"Sam?" Daniel begged, picking up on Jack's tone. "Please tell us what's wrong." Sam looked up again and he gasped as he realized she wasn't looking at him, but toward him.

"Has your eyesight been damaged Major Carter?" Teal'c asked. Sam sighed, knowing she never could fool her guys.

"It always happens after he tries the mind probe on me," she reassured them, "but it never has been this bad before. It usually goes away in a few days."

"What can you see Carter?" Jack asked, assessing her condition and mentally modifying any escape plans he had been able to come up with to cope with her disability.

"Not much Sir," she admitted. "I see three black shadows inside a slightly less black blob."

"Can you see this?" he asked, moving his arm up and down by his side. After a few seconds he frowned and started walking toward the far corner of the cell.

"Yes," she cried when he reached the corner. "One of you just moved."

"That was me," he told her, rejoining the others by the bars. Their escape just took on a whole new degree of difficulty. "How many times has he probed you anyway?" She was about to respond when Kull warriors rounded the corner and entered her cell. "No!" he shouted as they took her back up to the interrogation chamber and her screams started again.

Time slowed down again, only the occasional screams from Sam marking time as it passed. Thankfully the screams weren't nonstop this time, but the team still cringed every time one was heard. "O'Neill," Teal'c said quietly, staring in the direction they had taken Sam. Jack and Daniel were instantly alert, straining their ears for any out of place sounds. They finally heard the soft sound of rubber on rock just before they saw Reynolds pop his head around the corner briefly.

"I found them," he called out to his team. "Meet up at my position." He nodded to the responses he received through his earpiece while carefully making his way to their cell, constantly on the lookout for any traps. "Am I glad to see you," he said when he finally made it to the cell.

"Not as glad as we are trust me," Jack replied. "How did you find us?"

"The villagers saw the address to where you were taken. When you didn't report back Hammond sent SG-13 to find you. The villagers told them what happened, Hammond authorized a rescue mission, and viola; I'm here saving your ass again." He raised his gun as more steps could be heard coming, lowering it again as the rest of the team joined him. "Jones will blow the door and we'll have you back in time for the Simpsons."

"No," the three men spoke at once as Jones was reaching for his C-4. SG-3 looked around in alarm, weapons trained on the threat they thought SG-1 had seen. Confused, Reynolds looked at Jack.

"Carter's here," he told them. It took them a few minutes to understand what he meant by that, but they could see the understanding flitter onto each of their faces. "Anubis is here too. He captured her before the self destruct went off and has been torturing her ever since."

"We'll get her back," Reynolds told them with the rest of his team nodding their agreement. They had paled as Jack talked but he could see their determination to bring their missing friend home.

"Everything in my gut tells me if we make one wrong move he's gonna grab Carter, run up to his ship, and disappear."

"We'll just have to be sneaky then," Reynolds smirked as Jones traded positions with Barnes. Barnes pulls out various lock picking tools while Reynolds makes a hurried call to SG-13. "Dixon and his men have pulled back to a more discreet position," he told them, coming back to stand next to Barnes who was working patiently on the lock. "They're still watching the Gate, but have withdrawn from view." Jack nodded approvingly as Barnes finally popped the lock on the door.

"Sorry it took so long Sir," he apologized as he put his tools away. "Doctor Jackson, you're bleeding. Are you okay?" Daniel looked down at his leg just as the screams started up again. SG-3 paled when they realized who was making the sound. Jack, Daniel, and Teal'c just took the weapons offered them and strode out of the room.

"I'll be fine," Daniel said icily as he followed his friends out of the room. He was engulfed in a rage so powerful he couldn't even feel his injury. SG-3 barely had time to shake off their paralysis and followed them from the room.

Teal'c led them through the stone labyrinth of the cell block and back to the interrogation chamber. The lack of Jaffa, or the other prisoners they could hear before, was making the team uncomfortable. Jack silently asked Reynolds about it, but the Colonel could only shrug. The question was answered as they neared the interrogation chamber. Bodies of dead prisoners were left where they fell; occasionally a Jaffa was with them, obviously victims to the Kull warrior's weapons. "The Goa'uld are not known for their patience," Teal'c reminded them quietly. "Anubis especially so." They nodded and slowly crept closer to the room. Angry voices could be heard coming from the room, mixing with Sam's screams in an angry duet.

"Why is this not working?" Anubis demanded.

"I don't know my Lord," someone begged inside the room. They crept to the doorway. Reynolds pulled out a small mirror from his pocket and angled it so they could see what was happening in the next room. Sam was lying on a table, staring blankly at the ceiling, her mouth open in one continuous scream. They could see the incision where the mind probe went, and cringed when light glinted off of something metallic inside her wound. One of the unknown Goa'uld they had seen before was intently studying one of the various monitors around the table. "Perhaps the calibration settings were changed without my approval." The Goa'uld punched a code into the console. They cringed as the probe slowly withdrew from her mind. Halfway out though, the probe stopped, a warning alert started sounding on the console. The Goa'uld looked up in a panic before entering a command on the console. The probe started going in and out of Sam's head. Jack gripped his weapon tighter as he realized what was happening. The probe was stuck and the Goa'uld was trying to rock it to get it unstuck just like he did with his truck during the last snowstorm.

Sam's screams suddenly worsened as if her life was being ripped from her body as the probe retracted. The Goa'uld was visibly shaking. When the probe finally was almost out of her, he grabbed it and yanked hard. As soon as the probe left her head she was silent again. The Goa'uld studied his readout momentarily, his eyes widening as he looked up to face Anubis. Anubis turned his back on him as his Kull warriors blasted into the Goa'uld, the force lifting him off his feet and throwing him out of the room to the hallway where the SG teams were hiding. He was dead before he hit the ground. "Next," Anubis said coldly. The Kull grabbed another Goa'uld who was cowering in the corner, bringing him to stand before Anubis.

"My Lord," he stammered. "I have been studying the results from the failed attempts and believe the placement is the problem. I have been running simulations in my lab to overcome this problem."

"Let's go get them," Anubis said.

"My Lord," the Goa'uld gulped loudly. "The simulations aren't…" The Kull raising their arms stopped him mid sentence. "I mean the simulations should be complete by now."

"You should hope so. If they are not I will be practicing the placement of my mind probe on you." The Kull grabbed the cowering Goa'uld by the arms and dragged him out of the room, Anubis following with the remainder of the Kull warriors leaving the room temporarily empty. That was all the invitation they needed.

"Carter," Jack called out quietly as they raced into the room. Anger soared through him when he saw it wasn't straps tying her to the table but heavy manacles locked over her arms, legs, and head. Barnes pulled out his lock picking tools again, but this time fumbling them with his sweaty hands.

"Shit," he cursed as he bent to pick up the fallen tools. "I'm sorry." He started working on the locks holding her left foot to the table. Other members of SG-3 picked up his extra tools and started doing the same to the others.

"Sam," he cried out again, putting his shaking hand on her cheek. She didn't respond to them, simply staring blearily at the ceiling. It was a few moments before he had the courage to slide his hand down to her neck. The relief flowed through him when he felt the steady thump under his fingertips.

"It's going to be okay Sam," Daniel said as he took his position next to Jack and placed a supportive hand on her shoulder. Teal'c followed suite with her other shoulder while Jack moved his hand back to her cheek. She twitched for a second and Jack thought they might be getting through to her, but he looked down at Barnes's horrified gasp and realized what happened. He had managed to pick the lock he was working on and gasped as torn and shredded skin clung to the manacle as it sprang open. Barnes quickly overcame his shock and moved to the next one. Daniel kept encouraging Sam before turning to Jack. "He has a sarcophagus." A few more manacles were opened, the silence that followed each one telling Jack her skin was just as mangled.

"No," he decided, knowing instinctively that their time was almost up. "We don't have time." Daniel nodded in understanding and began reassuring Sam again. Finally the last lock was picked and Jack grabbed Sam's limp form and rushed to the door, everyone else falling in place behind him. They made it out of the fortress and into the surrounding woods before their luck finally ran out.

"Looks like they know we're here," Reynolds yelled as alarms started blaring in the fortress. Kull warriors and Jaffa streamed from the fortress while Death Gliders began strafing the forest in every direction. "Dixon," he screamed into his radio. "Secure the Gate now!"

"Already done," Dixon answered back. "I figured your cover was blown when Death Gliders started pouring out of the sky. Gate's active and the SGC's gonna keep a radio signal coming through to keep it that way. We're just waiting for you to show up."

"Roger that," he said before diving out of the way of a strafing Glider. He looked around and saw everyone had dived for cover and was getting to their feet. Soon they were running for the gate as the sounds of the Kull warriors were getting closer.

"Go!" Dixon shouted to his men as SG-1 and 3 ran out of the forest and into the clearing the Stargate was located in. They had only halfway cleared the open space when the Kull warriors emerged, pointing their weapons at the now clear targets. "Fire in the hole!" Dixon shouted before hitting the button on his initiator. The forest surrounding the Stargate exploded in flame. The teams, having fallen to their stomachs at Dave's warning were quickly staggering to their feet and racing to the still active Stargate. "Go!" Dave shouted, taking a few shots at the Kull who were slowly emerging from the flames. Reynolds joined him by the Stargate and added his own weapon for suppression fire. The Kull were too late though, his explosives causing just enough diversion to give the team the few seconds they needed to get through the gate. Dixon watched as one by one they jumped into the wormhole, allowing himself to leave only after Colonel Reynolds rushed passed him. "Close the iris," he shouted when he found himself on the ramp. He quickly moved off the ramp in case some of the Kull managed to make it through before the iris closed and breathed a big sigh of relief when the Stargate shut down.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer and notes on chapter 1.

Enjoy.

* * *

><p>The defense teams stood ready, as did the medical teams. Rescue missions were always the worst. The Stargate spinning had everybody tensing up. "We're receiving a radio transmission," Walter Harriman said from his position in the control room.<p>

"Put it through," Hammond said.

"SGC this is SG-13. Do you copy?" The voice of Colonel Dixon came out from the intercom.

"We read you Colonel," Hammond answered. "What's your situation?"

"SG-3 reported they located SG-1 and began the extraction process," Dixon reported from the other side of the wormhole. "They requested radio silence; going for the stealth approach, but several Death Gliders have flown out from the fortress. I think they're covers blown."

"I agree," Hammond sighed. "We'll keep the Gate open for you. Just tell us when it's time to open the door."

"Copy that Sir. I'll keep you updated." The room tensed as the open channel relayed everything that happened on the planet. They winced as they heard the whine of Death Gliders. "We're coming in hot," Dixon shouted through his radio. "And they have company right behind them."

"Understood," Hammond told him. "We'll be ready." He turned to Harriman. "Open the iris. Defense teams stand by." He watched as the room jumped into action. He turned back to the radio. "Door's open Colonel. Get our people home."

"Copy that General." A few minutes later SG-16 come through the gate, taking up defensive positions along with the security forces. They all tensed as people started pouring through the gate. In the confusion it took a few minutes for Hammond to realize exactly what he was seeing. It wasn't until the gate shut down that he understood what was happening.

Jack O'Neill had exited the wormhole and dived off the ramp, where he lay unmoving. Daniel and Teal'c formed rank around their friend with Reynolds and the rest of SG-3 circling them. At first Hammond thought Colonel O'Neill had been hit. Janet thought so too. He could see her muscling her way through the armed men and women in the gate room.

"Medic!" Reynolds shouted, leaving his place from the circle to force people out of the way of the gurney slowly making its way into the room. Janet quickly took his spot in the circle, but for a split second he had a clear view of the team. Colonel O'Neill was cradling someone. O'Neill looked up at Janet just as the medical team blocked his view, but he could tell from the gasp from everyone in the gate room that something was wrong.

"Colonel, it's okay. I'm here. Let me help her." Hammond heard the words from his CMO, but they sounded wrong to him somehow. He heard her say those same words so many times, always with confidence and self assuredness that broke through even the most battle scarred soldiers. This time it was strangled, like she was unsure of herself. She was spooked, he realized, and she doesn't get spooked. But her words did their job.

Jack nodded and struggled to stand with his cargo. Everyone in the gate room had frozen in shock, except SG-3 who were ferrying people out of the way and bringing the gurney closer to the group still on the ground. As a group they bent down and helped SG-1 to their feet. The same gasp circled through the control room when SG-3 backed off enough to where they could see who was on the gurney.

"I've got the elevators," someone said, sprinting from the room.

"We've got the hallways," someone else said. The rest of SG-3 sprinted from the room.

"Infirmary now!" Reynolds ordered, pushing the gurney. The men of SG-1 fell into step around the gurney, their hands never leaving their presumed dead teammate. Janet spared a brief, shocked look at the General before following them out of the room.

Feeling slowly returned to Hammond; and more importantly his people. The medical staff raced back to the infirmary while SG-16 slowly handed over their weapons to the waiting airmen. The control room staff likewise began doing their normal duties. Hammond sighed, returning to his office and the stack of paperwork waiting for him. He'd give it an hour before heading down to the infirmary to see if miracles really do happen.

* * *

><p>Jack sat frozen in his chair, his attention focused entirely on the door in front of him. Once Janet had overcome her shock she had taken charge. Knowing they would insist on someone staying with Sam at all times, she had taken the lesser evil and allowed Teal'c to stay with the proviso he stay out of their way. Daniel had his own injury so he was allowed in, but Jack was sidelined. Forced to wait on this uncomfortable chair while his life was being decided inside that room. He couldn't survive losing her again.<p>

"Hey Jack," Reynolds said, coming to stand next to the stricken man.

"Shoot me." Reynolds took a step back, unsure what to make of the situation. "They won't let me in cause I'm not injured," Jack explained, his eyes never leaving the door, "so I need you to shoot me."

"Sorry Jack," he told him, moving closer to his friend. "They already took my gun. I can pour hot coffee on your arm if you want." He sat down, his eyes drifting to the door. "But they might just send you to the Academy Hospital for that. They won't even let us in for our Post Gates. Just said come back tomorrow." Jack sighed, feeling sorry for the men that he owed so much too. They couldn't leave base until their Post Gate was finished. Neither could he, he realized, but then leaving was the last thing on his mind right now.

He blinked when a coffee cup floated into his line of sight. Turning his head he saw Reynolds holding out the cup for him. "Unless you really do want me to pour it on your arm." He sighed, grabbing the offending cup and downing a large gulp. "You look like shit Jack." He said, leaning back and staring at the door again. Silence filled the hall, only punctuated by the sound of the two men slowly sipping their coffee. When he was done he stood. "She's one of the toughest people I've ever met." He gripped Jack's shoulder in a show of support before grabbing the empty coffee cup and disappearing down the corridor and leaving Jack alone with his thoughts once more.

"What happened Son?" Hammond asked quietly, jerking Jack out of his stupor. He scrubbed his face with his hands and checked his watch before remembering Anubis had taken everything from them except for their clothes.

"Sir?" he asked groggily. Hammond sighed.

"It's almost been two hours since your return." Hammond answered the unspoken question. "There's still no word from Doctor Fraiser."

"What's taking so long?" Jack asked, standing up and stretching his protesting muscles. He began pacing back and forth. Hammond was about to call him out when the door opened and Janet stepped out.

"General," she replied automatically while her eyes searched for the one man she knew was out there. "Colonel."

"Doc?" he asked desperately. She looked up and down the empty hallway, but knew this wasn't the place for this talk.

"Let's go to my office." She turned and strode back into the infirmary, the other two men wasting no time following her. Jack paused as soon as he crossed the threshold, his eyes immediately scanning the area. He saw Daniel in his customary bed, his eyes never leaving a curtained off corner even though he was asleep. Doc's happy juice, he deduced. He let his own eyes drift to the corner, unsurprised to see Teal'c meditating just beyond the curtain. The amount of activity going on in the room did surprise him though. A gentle push in the back reminded him he was not alone and he quickly followed Janet to her office.

"First of all that is Major Carter," she told them as she shut her door and circled her desk. She raised her hand, forestalling the next question she knew was coming. "She's lost a lot of blood, but that's not my main concern. She's catatonic and has a deep head laceration…"

"No," Jack interrupted. "She's not catatonic. Catatonic people don't scream."

"Colonel," Janet asked gently, "What happened?" He took a deep breath.

"Anubis was using his mind probe on her, but it wasn't working right. She screamed and screamed for hours and when they finally brought her back I wished she was dead." He got a faraway look in his eyes and a single tear rolled down his cheek. "When she woke up after that first time she was fine. Well, not fine, but not that," he gestured to the infirmary knowing Janet would understand. "She's drugged, or still feeling the effects of the probe, or something, but she is not catatonic. She just needs time."

"We're still waiting for the results of the tox screen," she told him. "Maybe that will tell us more." Jack just nodded. "The laceration behind her temple?" she asked unable to finish the sentence. Jack finished it for her.

"Where Anubis put his mind probe." She nodded, paling slightly.

"I wanted to do a MRI, but Teal'c refused to let me. Any idea why?" Jack got a pained look on his face.

"The probes weren't working. Anubis brought in other Goa'uld to figure out why. The last one had trouble removing the probe. Eventually he just ripped it out of her head. God. I never want to hear anyone scream like that ever again." He dropped his head into his hands, unable to hold back the tears any longer. Thankfully he was able to pull himself back together after a few seconds.

"I'll start with a CAT scan," Janet said more to herself than the two men still in her office, making a note the chart in front of her. "Make sure there aren't any broken pieces of the probe that could react violently to the MRI. I'm assuming that is what Teal'c is concerned with." Jack nodded his head. "Anything else I need to know?"

"She died." He spoke so softly they almost missed it.

"How many times?" Janet asked.

"Just once that I know of," Jack admitted, "but they look like they had plenty of practice putting her in that sarcophagus." Janet nodded, making another notation on her paper. "Can I go sit with her? Please Janet." Jack was begging and he knew it, but right now he didn't care.

"Get cleaned up first," she told him, pointing at his blood soaked shirt he was still wearing. He had forgotten about the shirt and how much blood Sam had lost. Not that there was any time to do anything about it during their mad dash off the planet. "It should take my team thirty minutes to finish bandaging her wrists and ankles. Get cleaned up. Get something to eat. When they're done you can sit with her."

"Thank you," Jack murmured as he left the room, leaving the General and the Doctor alone.

"Is there something else Doctor?" Hammond asked when she looked at him.

"It could be nothing, especially what Colonel O'Neill told us about the mind probe," she began, "but I am concerned with her EEG."

"Concerned how?" She took a deep breath to steady herself.

"I concerned about the possibility of brain damage." Hammond closed his eyes at this news.

"How bad?" he asked.

"It's too early to know. And there is a possibility it will correct itself." They both were quiet for a few minutes, letting the last tidbit of information settle on their minds.

"Thank you Doctor." Hammond stood, waving Janet down when she automatically started standing. "Until you know for certain let's keep this conversation between us." She nodded her agreement. "Keep me updated on any changes. In the meantime I have a phone call to make. A long distance phone call." He nodded at her and left her office, securing the door behind her. She glanced around at the empty room before looking down at Sam's file sitting casually on her desk.

She couldn't remember pulling it out of her filing cabinet before she remembered it had been shipped down to the secure files room along with the files of every other man and woman who had died that day on the Alpha site. One of her nurses must have run down and retrieved it, she realized, knowing it would be needed as soon as they saw who was cradled in Colonel O'Neill's arms. She looked back at the folder, no longer able to keep the tears from falling. She cried for the best friend she thought she lost that day. And she cried for the shadow of that friend Jack brought back.

* * *

><p>Jack set a new record in the shortest shower scorecard. He also inhaled his dinner so fast he actually didn't know what they served. As it was it was less than five minutes after leaving that he was back in the infirmary. He joined Teal'c outside the curtain and watched as the medical team finished bandaging their friend. Janet rejoined her team, frowning at the Colonel, but didn't force him out again. Teal'c took this opportunity to freshen up as well, leaving both men ready to maintain their vigil when Janet and her nurses finally stepped back from Sam's prone form.<p>

"Call me if there's any change," Janet reminded them softly before heading to her office. Jack nodded as he grabbed a nearby chair and went to her bedside, absently noticing Teal'c doing the same.

"Oh God," he cried softly, reaching out for her still hand and stopping centimeters away from it. She looked fragile. Broken. Like the slightest touch would shatter her into a million pieces. He sat down heavily, focusing on her unseeing eyes. What he wouldn't give to see that spark in her eyes again, even that mischievous glint in the dungeon where everything she said would bring her pain. Even her broken body was better than this shell.

He leaned forward in his chair, his nervous fingers content to drum on the sheet a few inches from her hand. Their whole world shrunk to the lone figure on the bed, the heart monitor Janet attached to her counting off time as it passed. Sometime during the night Daniel awoke from his drug induced slumber and joined their vigil, shooting death glares at the doctors and nurses who dared put him under when his friend needed him most.

Time passed. Shifts changed. The lights brightened signifying a new day had started but still the three of them kept their vigil. And still Sam showed no sign of joining them. "Jack," someone said softly behind him. Jack jerked his head around to stare at Reynolds. He glanced at Sam before focusing on the Colonel again. "It's time for your debriefing." Jack started, glancing at the watch he had reacquired. He remembered the General mentioning something about a briefing, but for the life of him couldn't remember when. Daniel shot Jack a panicked glance while Teal'c squared his shoulders and made no move to rise. "He did say he would understand if Doctor Jackson and Teal'c wanted to sit this one out, at least initially."

"Thank you," Daniel whispered. Jack sighed standing slowly to let his cramped muscles relax. He placed a reassuring hand on the young archeologist's shoulder.

"I'll be quick."

"We shall be vigilant," Teal'c replied. Jack nodded, knowing nothing would harm her while Teal'c and Daniel were here. Slowly he followed Reynolds out of the room in into the hallway.

* * *

><p>Sam was floating. Flying through time, space, the very existence of everything. She briefly wondered if this was what ascension felt like before feeling the pull of her own body beckoning her back. She felt enormous relief when the excruciating pain associated with Anubis and his mind probe was absent. She sighed with contentment as she let her body slowly pull her back in. The first time this had happened she panicked, thinking another energy life form had taken over her body again, but by now she simply enjoyed the sensation as she slowly got her own senses under control.<p>

Touch would be first, she knew, followed by smell, sound and then sight. She idly wondered where taste would fit into that list, but knew she was unlikely to find out. Food was a luxury she was rarely afforded.

She groaned as the first touches of pain washed over her. She always hoped this last one will be the one where Anubis had gone too far, damaged her body and mind even beyond the range of the sarcophagus to repair. The pain is better than the alternative though. Waking in the sarcophagus, knowing the price for a few pain free hours will be her soul and wondering when the devil is going to collect it.

She stopped thinking suddenly, realizing something is wrong. Forcing herself to focus on more than the pain she finally understood what wasn't normal. She's laying down; not strung up in her cell like a puppet. The only time they allow her to lay down is when she's in the sarcophagus or on that damn table. She starts to panic. It's too soon. She knows another session so soon will kill her. She briefly wonders if that would be such a bad thing before she remembers that a Carter never quits.

She struggles with all her might even while her senses are coming faster and faster. A strange smell assaults her, the smell both foreign and so incredibly familiar it almost hurts. Antiseptics she remembers after a few minutes. Antiseptic. Infirmary. Home.

She makes the connection as her ears decide it's time for them to work again. The din is overwhelming, but she latches onto two voices like a lifeline.

"It's okay Sam. You're safe."

"It is over Major Carter. You are home." Daniel. Teal'c. Safe. Home. She stops struggling instead reaching out desperately for something, latching onto the hands that grab hers with all the strength she can muster. She realizes she is no longer restrained, though the thin sheet she can now feel is holding her down far more effectively than any restraint Anubis had.

"Home?" she gasps out, barely able to form the word and not knowing if she has enough strength to force it past her parched throat. Her eyes finally focus on the dark shapes around her before they roll up and she finally allows herself to sleep.

* * *

><p>Janet jumped when the phone on her desk rang. "Fraiser," she says into the receiver, reaching for her coffee cup and taking a deep gulp of the lukewarm beverage. She had been going over Sam's latest EEG results and had laid her head down. Just for a second she promised herself. She glanced out her window, happy to see the three men sitting around the bedside calmly. She made a mental note to get some sleep soon, knowing she would never forgive herself if her tiredness caused her to make a mistake.<p>

"Janet," the voice on the other end answered. "This is Sandy. I've just finished going over the EEG readings you sent me. I'm not sure what to make of them."

"That makes two of us," Janet told her.

"If I had to guess, I'd say this person is in a coma, although there are certain readings that are far too active for that to be the case." Janet could hear rustling as she put the file she was studying down. "I know you hate losing people Janet, but I don't think there is anything I can do."

"There's more," Janet told her. "The readings belong to Major Carter." Silence filled the room.

"I thought she was dead," Sandy said, her voice wavering. Being Janet's best friend, Sam was often called upon to help entertain visiting doctors when they were needed at the SGC. In this instance entertaining meant girls nights with silly movies, chocolate, and ice cream. Sandy didn't know Sam like Janet did, but she still felt sadness at her death.

"So did I." Janet choked on the words, tears threatening to spill again, but she held them back. "SG-1 was able to locate her and bring her back."

"This is her condition?" Sandy guessed, knowing she was right by the silence on the other end. "Am I correct in assuming this is a special case?"

"Yes," Janet confirmed. Special case was the term they used to refer to other planets and alien technology.

"It's still not a lot to go by Janet. Maybe if I can get a copy of her MRI?" she suggested. Janet shook her head before realizing her friend couldn't see her.

"We can't do a MRI yet. There's some concern over fragmentation."

"I see," she said, automatically looking at her schedule. If there was anything foreign in Sam's brain they would need a neurosurgeon to remove it. "I can leave tonight and be there in the morning if you would like."

"Yes please," Janet replied gratefully. "Hopefully we'll have the results from the CAT scan by then. Give you a little bit more to work with."

"See you soon," Sandy answered before ending the call. Hanging up her receiver she took a minute to rub her tired eyes. She sees Reynolds come and collect Jack for his debriefing and is debating between going to her quarters or just sacking out on her couch when a panicked cry echoes through the infirmary.

"Janet!" She's up and out the door before consciously deciding to move. Only one thing could make Daniel sound so scared.

Her first thought is Sam is having a seizure, her arms and legs are twitching uncontrollably. She calls out for the medicine she needs, but before a nurse can hand it to her Sam is quiet. The heart monitor, which had increased dramatically in the last few minutes, was steady, slowly approaching normal. She had death grips on Daniel and Teal'c, but they didn't seem to mind. In fact they calmly sat there, whispering words of encouragement to Sam. Janet could see her eyes darting back and forth before rolling up as she falls unconscious.

"What happened?" Jack demanded, forcing his way past my nurses and placing himself next to Daniel. Janet quickly checks the various readouts and monitors surrounding the bed, pleased when the EEG shows more of a normal sleeping pattern. She has one of the nurses pull the last hour of readings from the EEG, wanting to know exactly what happened with her brainwaves during her episode.

She turns to the three men waiting for answers. "She's sleeping peacefully," she tells them with a smile.

"Good. That's good." The relief is clear in his voice as Daniel forces his hand to unclench around Sam. Teal'c does the same thing as Jack sits in the last chair. They are lost to their vigil once more.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer and notes on chapter 1.

Enjoy.

* * *

><p>Janet felt much better as she made her way back from the commissary after getting some fresh coffee and a muffin. She did one more set of rounds, changed the bandages around Sam's wrists and ankles, made some notes in Sam's chart, and decided to crash in her office for a few hours. Dr. Brightman promised to let her know of any changes.<p>

Five hours later she woke up refreshed. Looking around she realized that no one was smart enough to go find a bed. Jack, Daniel, and Teal'c were still crowded around Sam's bed, though she could tell none of them were awake. Stretching, she signaled Dr. Brightman before heading to the locker room. A shower and some coffee and she'd be as good as new.

She made her way back to her office and picked up the latest EEG readings. She had sent a copy to Sandy to review during her plane ride out to Colorado. She only hoped her friend had better luck at deciphering the information then she did. She still couldn't explain the change in readings as Sam broke out of her catatonic state. Looking up she noticed it was time to do the morning rounds.

She walked quietly toward the bed so as not to disturb the three men finally sleeping, surprised when she saw one pair of eyes open. "Hey," she greeted her friend, which caused Sam to jump and turn her head in the direction of the doctor. Her movement, slight as it was, was enough to wake all three men.

"Hey Sam," Daniel greeted from the other side of the bed. Janet frowned when Sam looked toward him but stopped just short of the archeologist. Janet turned to look at Colonel O'Neill questioningly. Teal'c saved the other man from answering.

"Has you're eyesight worsened again Major Carter?" Sam's head shot around, instinctively trying to find who was speaking to her. Her hands reached out. Only when Daniel grabbed one of them did she let herself relax.

"Sam?" Janet questioned, reaching out to grab Sam's other hand and simultaneously checking her pulse.

"Janet?" she whispered. She nodded before remembering her suspicions.

"It's me," she told her friend. With her other hand she poured a glass of water. "Here's some water. Drink," she instructed, bringing the straw to her friend's lips, pulling it away after a few sips. Sitting the glass back on the table, she shot a look to Jack. "Was there something you forgot to mention Colonel?"

"Sorry," the Colonel bowed his head in shame. Janet decided not to press the issue, instead throwing the look to the other side of the bed where Teal'c and Daniel were both crowding closely.

"Major Carter informed us her visual acuity decreased after every session the mind probe was administered," Teal'c told her.

"But she also said it got better after a few days," Daniel added, begging Janet with his eyes. Please let that be true.

"Sam?" Janet asked her friend. Sam had stopped turning her head, her blank face staring somewhere at the ceiling, but Janet could feel her pulse increase as the guys were talking. "Is that true? Did it just go away after a few days?"

"It did at first," she reluctantly admitted after a few minutes, "but it's been taking longer and longer to come back."

"Okay." Janet gave Sam's hand once last squeeze before releasing it. She wrote a few notes in her file before pulling out the dreaded penlight. The men winced in anticipation but Sam didn't react at all, even after the light shone into her eyes. "Can you see that?" Sam merely shook her head before tiredly closing her eyes. "Get some sleep. We'll talk later." Sam nodded and within minutes she was asleep again. She turned to face the three men, who knew immediately that their united vigil was over. Teal'c grabbed a yawning Daniel and steered him from the infirmary. Jack retook his chair, laying his hand so close to Sam's that they were almost touching. Janet smiled sadly, quietly making her way back to her office. She had some new information that might shed light on those EEG readings after all.

* * *

><p>"George," Jacob greeted as he walked slowly down the ramp, "I'm not going to convince anyone that our ties to Earth are not that strong if you keep calling me up to chat." He stopped short at the pained expression on his friend's face. On everyone's faces. "What's wrong?" he asked, sobering up in an instant. It had been a few days since Sam's miraculous return. The base was slowly overcoming the shock, but seeing the other Carter seemed to bring it out again.<p>

"We have a development," he told him. "Let's go to my office."

"Is it about the prototype?" he asked falling into step with the other man. "Because Sam died for that thing and I am not going to let her death be in vain." He knew Sam had gotten it to work. He also knew the SGC was having trouble retracing her steps. Maybe if the Tok'ra weren't pouting they would have hundreds of weapons now and Anubis and his Kull warriors wouldn't be the threat they were.

'Patience Jacob,' Selmak reminded him. 'It has been many millennia since the Tok'ra openly defied the System Lords on the battlefield. All the younger generation know is stealth and trickery.'

'Hiding under a rock or in a cave isn't going to win the war,' he countered. 'Intelligence is good, but it must be balanced with battle to be truly effective.' This had become a familiar argument. Both agreed that the Tok'ra needed to fight; they just didn't know how to get their point across to their associates.

'As we will continue to teach. The alliance have given them their first taste of battle, while the Tau'ri have given them a taste of victory. Soon they will want more of both."

"Jacob," Hammond started again once they were both comfortably seated in his office, "a week ago SG-1 was captured by Jaffa loyal to Anubis." Jacob paled and Hammond quickly reassured him. "They're fine. SG-3 and 16 were able to extract them, but not before SG-1 found someone else. Someone they wouldn't leave behind." He rose from behind his desk and moved so he was standing in front of the other man. "Jacob. They found Sam. She's alive and they brought her home."

Jacob was white while he tried to process those words. He looked up, shell shocked in disbelief. Hammond simply nodded. Jacob bolted for the door, running full speed down to the infirmary not stopping until he saw his daughter. "Sam," he choked out when he saw her. Teal'c looked up from her bedside, Daniel and Jack joining them seconds later. Teal'c took a step back and allowed Jacob the spot by her side.

"What happened?" he asked, never taking his eyes off his daughter. He reached out and grabbed her hand like she was the most precious thing in the world.

"The Kull ringed her up to the Al'kesh just before the self destruct went off," Jack told him quietly. "Anubis and Baal have been torturing her ever since."

"What did they want to know?" Jacob asked, horrified at the thought of anyone torturing his little girl.

"We witnessed Baal question Major Carter on the energy output of the prototype weapon," Teal'c told him.

"But we only saw a fraction of what she went through. Who knows what they were asking her before." Jack spoke up casually from his position by the doorframe. He tried to appear nonchalant but Jacob could see the guilt, hatred, and pain in his eyes. It probably matched his eyes perfectly.

"The mind probe?" he asked, horrified what the answer would be.

"Didn't work," Jack told him softly. "We don't know why."

"Oh Sam," he cried, caressing her cheek softly. "Is that where…" he asked, pointing to the blood soaked bandage on her head. Jack could only nod. "I can heal that." He started reaching for his belt before Janet stopped him.

"No. We think there might be some skull fragments or worse lodged in her brain. We need to remove them before we close the wound." He nodded in understanding. "You can heal these though," she said, pointing to Sam's wrists and ankles. She carefully unwrapped the bandage, exposing the mangled flesh. Jacob gasped as his eyes flared. Selmak looked at the doctor, silently asking if the other wounds were this bad. Janet simply nodded her head.

"I will do what I can," she said, reaching for the healing device. Slowly she began to remove what little of Sam's pain as she could.

* * *

><p>"Mind if I join you?" Daniel glanced up at the voice, nodding to Jacob and quickly grabbing the magazines he had spread all over the commissary table. "Scientific America? American Scientist? Science news? I always thought you were an Underground Archeologist guy." Daniel finished piling the magazines into a stack and Jacob sat his tray down.<p>

"They're Sam's," he admitted softly. "I just couldn't cancel her subscriptions." Jacob nodded understandingly. "I was going to read some to her, if she's up for it."

"Sounds nice," he told him. "You know when she was little she used to love getting sick." Daniel looked at him curiously. "Not seriously sick of course," he quickly amended, "but whenever she got sick her mom would just hold her and read to her for hours. Sometimes we were sure she was faking, but we didn't mind one bit." His face hardened. "She didn't become tough as nails until her mother died."

"I'm glad she did become tough," he told him. "She couldn't have survived half the things she has if she wasn't."

"Right," he said, deciding the trip down memory lane was over. He dived into his dinner of mystery meat and mashed potatoes.

"How'd it go?" Daniel asked innocently after taking a sip from his ever present coffee cup. Jacob wasn't fooled though. He had just finished the second session with the healing device. Janet, deciding the time had come to take back her infirmary, was still adhering to the one visitor rule, no matter how much Daniel and Teal'c begged to be in there with her. He knew both Daniel and Teal'c were waiting outside in the hall while he was in the infirmary.

"Good. Selmak thinks one more session should heal them completely. Janet even thinks the scarring will be at a minimum." He sighed, tossing his fork down on the table. "I wish we knew what was going on in that head of hers though. Heal it now and watch them slice it open again when they decide they need to remove those fragments? Leave it open and risk infection? Heal it and leave Sam blind for the rest of her life? Leave it and still have her blind?"

"I know." Daniel had been the sounding board for this very debate Janet was having, though he had no more answers for her than he had for Jacob. "Dr. Van Densen arrived last night. Hopefully she'll have some answers." He looked at his watch before grabbing the stack of magazines. "Gotta go. It's my turn."

Jacob nodded, finished his meal slowly, letting his thoughts run free. He desperately wanted to hold his daughter, talk with her one more time, but every time he visited her she was asleep. Her health was his foremost concern, which meant using the healing device to save her as much pain as possible.

'We should join Dr. Jackson,' Selmak told him. 'I am sure Dr. Fraiser won't object.'

'You need to rest,' he reminded his symbiote. The healing device always took a toll on the user, and Selmak was exceptionally old.

'I shall be fine for a few more hours,' she told him. 'This nourishment is helping sustain me. Besides you are not the only one that will sleep better when we finally see your daughter awake.' Jacob agreed and quickly finished his meal before heading to the infirmary.

* * *

><p>Sam glanced up as she heard footsteps coming toward her. She tried guessing who they belonged to based on their sound. The only one she had gotten right so far was Janet, the doctor's high heels making a distinctive sound against the concrete floor. "Daniel," Jack greeted the newcomer. "Getting in some light reading?" he asked.<p>

"I thought I would help Sam catch up," he replied. She heard a soft thud as something was dropped to her bedside table. "There's a new study with quantum mechanics that looked interesting."

"Really?" Sam asked, not believing her friends newfound interest in sub atomic science.

"Actually I didn't understand any of it," Daniel admitted. "But it's something to pass the time. Unless you don't want me to read to you." He started shifting uncomfortably.

"No, it's fine," she told him.

"I better get back to work," Jack told them, "Don't want Daniel putting us both to sleep." He gripped her hand in a farewell gesture. "Get some sleep Sam." She could hear the rustle of clothes and the squeak of the chair as Daniel and Jack changed places. Daniel started reading the article to her. She didn't listen to the words; simply let his voice flow over her. It was a soothing balm to her battered soul. Soon his voice, combined with the drugs Janet was giving her, was threatening to lull her into sleep. She was about to give in when a new sensation was felt. It didn't take her long to realize what the tingling sensation meant.

"Daniel," she whispered, wondering how the Goa'uld had managed to get on the base. She started panicking. She was supposed to be safe. She had escaped. Didn't she?

"What's wrong Sam?" Daniel asked, noticing her heart rate starting to climb. He looked over and saw Jacob coming through the door, but before he could understand Sam started to thrash. He immediately grabbed her to keep her from hurting herself.

"No!" she started to scream. "I won't go back. Stop hurting me. Please just let me die." She felt more hands, but in her mind they were hurting instead of helping. Images were running through her mind; the various ways Baal tortured her, the way the Jaffa humiliated her, and the way Anubis used her circling through her thoughts. Someone was calling her name, holding her securely but not savagely. It took a few minutes for her to realize her father was there.

"It's okay Sam. I'm here. It's okay." He kept repeating the mantra quietly to her. She suddenly shot out of bed, throwing her arms around him and holding on as if her life depended on it. Suddenly the fear, despair, worry, the physical and psychological pain of months of torture, and every other feeling she would not let Baal see came bursting out from her. She sobbed openly on his shoulders, not noticing his own tears were mixing with hers. Neither of them noticed Daniel slowly backing out of the room.

* * *

><p>"Morning Sam," Janet greeted cheerfully as she approached the bed. She had rushed in the night before, when she heard the ruckus Sam was making, but decided to leave her friend in the very capable hands of her father. She watched as the blonde cried herself to sleep before turning back to her office. They were both asleep when she finally left for the night. Janet was happy to see Sam looked better after her emotional release last night.<p>

"Morning?" Sam asked, tilting her head toward the doctor's footsteps. Jacob put down the scientific journal he had been reading to Sam. Sam got a perplexed look on her face. "How long have I been here?"

"They brought you back four days ago," Janet told her, checking the readings on the monitors and making notations on her chart. "But you were catatonic the first day." She stopped, a sudden thought crossing her mind. "Do you remember anything about that first day?"

Sam shrugged. "Not so much memories," she admitted after a few seconds, "but feelings, almost like a dream. I remember feeling safe there. I knew he couldn't hurt me there; if I could just stay there I would be free. But he always pulled me back."

"He won't hurt you anymore Sam," Janet promised her, giving her shoulder a squeeze until she nodded her head. Janet took a minute to fight back the tears she could feel forming, then gently took Sam's wrist and began unwrapping it. "Let me check your injuries."

Sam looked shocked, like this was the first time she even thought about her injuries. She quickly moved her other hand to her wrist as soon as Janet finished unwrapping it, her fingers trailing over her skin in surprise. Janet allowed the contact, knowing Sam normally would want to be completely informed on her medical condition after being injured.

Her skin wasn't as smooth as it was when she was captured, but it didn't show signs of the constant restraint Anubis had forced on her. "It's not as bad as I thought," she murmured softly.

"You can thank Selmak for that," her dad told her, moving her hand back to her side so the doctor could complete her examination. "She thinks one more session and they will be healed completely."

"Thank you," Sam said truthfully, unsuccessfully keeping the tears at bay again.

"Save your thanks for when she's finally able to tackle that head wound," Jacob joked. Sam's eyes widened, her hands automatically reaching for her head. This time Janet intercepted her hands. All Sam felt was a stiff bandage on her temple.

"Is that where…" Sam faltered, the familiar panic bubbling up inside her.

"I'm afraid so," Janet said softly, holding her friend gently. She could tell Sam needed a moment to collect herself. She busied herself with examining the other wounds, making small talk the whole time. By the time she had grabbed her penlight the soldier's mask was firmly in place again. "How's your eyesight today?" she asked, checking Sam's reaction to the light. She was discouraged when there was none.

"Janet?" Sam asked quietly as the doctor began removing the bandages on her head wound so she could examine it. It took all Sam's effort not to raise her hands again. Janet must have known this for she quickly abandoned her ministrations and grabbed Sam's hands. Not in a restraining way, but in a comforting way. A way that told her Janet was going to fight for her.

"Yes Sam?"

"You can fix what he did right?" Janet sighed, squeezing her hands reassuringly. She was about to answer when Jack walked into the room.

"Carter. Doc. Carter senior," he beamed as he walked into the room before turning seriously to Jacob. "Hammond want to see you Jacob. We just got a message from the Tok'ra." Jacob sighed.

"I'll be right back Sam. I promise." A reassuring pat on the knee and he was gone. Jack looked from Sam's face to Janet's and back to Sam's.

"I have some work to do too Carter," he said quickly, realizing he was interrupting something important. Janet gave him a grateful look. "I'll come back later with some lunch?" he asked the Doctor. She nodded her assent. Taking one last look at the women he beat a hasty retreat from the infirmary.

"Janet? What's wrong?" Sam asked after the sound of the Colonel's footsteps faded away.

"Do you remember anything about the mind probes?" Janet asked. "About how he administered them?"

"Only that they didn't work, and that was just because after each session Baal would have his turn and ask me the same questions. That and they hurt like a bitch until I would wake up in the sarcophagus again." She trailed off, her mind connecting the dots and leaping to conclusions. She stared at the doctor, her panicky eyes desperately trying to lock onto Janet in the darkness. "Is that why you haven't done anything for it? Is it a wound only a sarcophagus can heal?"

"No Sam," she tried to calm the other woman down. "We can fix it."

"Then why haven't you?" Sam shrieked. She was gripping Janet's hands painfully now. Janet couldn't stop the small gasp from falling. Sam, realizing what she was doing, quickly let go of her hands, but Janet wouldn't let go that easily.

"Listen to me Sam," Janet told her sternly, waiting until Sam calmed down before continuing. "The last time Anubis used his probe there was a problem. It didn't come out and he had to forcefully remove it. It left some fragmentation behind." Sam paled at the information.

"I've called in a neurosurgeon. You remember Sandy?" Sam nodded slowly. "She's here. Tomorrow morning we're going to remove all the fragments. We're going to use Anubis's own access point so we won't cause any further damage. Then we will fix what he did to you."

"Promise?" she asked weakly, for the first time allowing the vulnerable woman to show through her military bravado.

"I promise." She pulled the distraught woman towards her, comforting her friend as sobs tore through her body.

* * *

><p>Sam awoke to the quiet voices of her teammates. Jack and Daniel playing chess, with Teal'c offering advice to the Colonel. Content to just listen, she let her mind drift back to her conversation with Janet. There were pieces of that damn probe stuck in her mind. Even after she escaped she wasn't really free.<p>

"Check," Jack said smugly. Teal'c sighed.

"Mate," Daniel countered, moving his own piece.

"What?"

"Did I not tell you moving that pawn was ill advised O'Neill." Jack grumbled under his breath as he reset the board.

"Who's next."

"Perhaps Major Carter wishes to play the next match." Sam could imagine the smug look on the Jaffa's face as she hears chairs being pushed out from the foot of her bed. She smiled, opening her eyes and hopefully facing in their direction. She's not.

"Hey Sam," Daniel greets from her left side while Jack shuffles around to her right. She sighs.

"We brought lunch," Jack tells her, "but Teal'c got hungry and ate it." She could almost see his eyebrow arching.

"I had already consumed my midday meal Major Carter," Teal'c told her, "however I was able to rescue an item away from O'Neill and secure it safely for your nourishment." Her stomach lurched at the thought of food but she could do nothing as the chess set was put away and her table was brought up to her. Someone grabbed the controls on her bed and raised her head until she was in a comfortably reclined position.

"Here," Daniel said, guiding her hands to a spoon and a small bowl on the table. Her stomach wasn't sure it was ready for solid food but she trusted the guys implicitly. Her stomach stopped rebelling when the first taste of blue jello filled her mouth.

"Thank you," she told them as she took another careful bite of the dessert. They all knew it wasn't just for the jello.

"Anytime Carter." They sat there talking about everything and nothing while they watched Sam struggle to finish her snack. They winced every time the spoon missed the cup or her mouth, but they knew this was something she needed to do herself. Even so, they could tell she was getting more and more frustrated at her inability to simply feed herself.

"Janet know you're all here?" she asked angrily as Teal'c finally wrestled to spoon away from her death grip. She desperately wanted to break down again, but knew she wouldn't in front of her guys. "Last I heard the one visitor at a time rule was still in place."

"Sam," Daniel told her gently. "We know about the surgery tomorrow." Cold dread filled her body, melting the red hot fury she had moments ago in a second.

"I'm scared," she admitted. She could feel the guys form rank around her, protecting her as best they could. "What if something goes wrong? We don't have a sarcophagus. There's no coming back if something goes wrong."

"There's no reason to be scared," Daniel reassured her. "Sandy's one of the best and you know Janet will be there every step of the way."

"Beside's you're one of the toughest people I know Carter," Jack said. "I mean, you stared down Anubis and he flinched. How hard can a simple surgery be after that?" A brief smile crossed her lips before she thought of something else.

"My father? Did the Tok'ra recall him?"

"Yes," Jack told her, a touch of anger painting his words, "But he told them to go screw themselves and he wouldn't be leaving until he was ready." She could practically hear Daniel's eyes rolling up exasperation.

"He's getting some sleep," Daniel told her seriously. "After the surgery is done Selmak will heal whatever she can. It's harder to heal bone than tissue. Selmak will need all the rest she can get."

"He did say he would stop by before they take you in," Jack told her. "And he's really is adamant about not leaving till he knows for sure you are okay. He'll be there Sam."

"As will we," Teal'c intoned. Sam nodded, struggling to keep her eyes open any longer. Her bed was lowered again and she fell into a peaceful sleep with the knowledge her team was watching over her.


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer and notes on chapter 1.

Enjoy.

* * *

><p>"You're doing great Sam," Jack encouraged, ignoring the icy shoulder Sam was trying to give him. She had come through the surgery with flying colors. Dr. Van Densen, with Janet's help, had removed several small bone and metal fragments from her brain. Selmak had been able to do two sessions with the healing device before needing to return to the Tok'ra. While not healing her head wound completely, Selmak had been able to give her a good head start. She was eating solid food again and able to stay awake for hours at a time. She had also lost most of the wires connecting her to the machines. Everything except of her EEG had been removed. Her brainwaves were still acting up. Sandy was fascinated by her condition. Sam was struggling to get enough energy to care either way.<p>

Not everything was fixed with the surgery though. Her eyesight, which everyone hoped her brain surgery would fix, was still gone. She was also starting to go through withdrawal. Her moods changed drastically, irritation and anger never far from the surface. Her stomach rebelled at the very thought of eating. Her body burned and froze with rage and despair. She would almost give anything to simply sleep in the sarcophagus and feel her pain go away. She hated herself for it.

Jack and Daniel were especially patient with her, having been through their own withdrawal. She had started pushing them away, attacking them for no reason simply to vent some of the rage that filled her veins. They took it without flinching. They held her as she ranted and raved, reassured her when she thought the worst, and simply talked to her when she thought she was alone in the world.

Janet had decided she was physically strong enough to start rebuilding her muscle strength. Several times a day the guys would help her walk around her corner of the infirmary, leading her like a guide dog. She was beginning to hate them for it.

"I should be stronger than this," she grumbled under her breath when her legs started shaking.

"I know you don't want to hear this," Jack encouraged her, "but it's just going to take some time to get your strength back."

"You're right," Sam shot back harshly. "I don't want to hear that." She jerked angrily out of his arms just as her legs gave out on her. Only Jack's quick hands kept her from falling completely on her the floor. She raised shaking hands and gave him a shove, throwing a glare where she thought he was. She heard steps backing away from her and let herself have a silent breakdown. God, she just felt so tired. Her whole body shook; pain, fear, fury, exhaustion, withdrawal. She didn't know why, but she just wanted it to stop.

"I think that's enough for today." She jumped when she heard Janet's voice behind her. She hadn't heard her come by. "Colonel?"

"On it," he said. She thought he left. He bent down to help her up, swinging her into his arms when her legs refused to stand. She grabbed onto him like a lifeline, burying her head in his shoulder. "It's okay Sam," he told her. It only took a few steps to get back to her bed, but by the time he got her settled she was already asleep. He shared a look with Janet before taking his customary place by her bedside.

* * *

><p>"You know it won't bite you right?" Daniel asked. Sam just shrugged, pushing her full plate away. "Sam?"<p>

"I'm just not hungry," she told him, resolutely ignoring the nausea her stomach was putting out at the very thought of food, leaning back into the bed and closing her eyes.

"Nightmares again?" he asked, already knowing the answer. She didn't acknowledge him. He sighed but moved the breakfast tray away. "What's wrong?"

"Headache," she said dismissively. "I've had worse."

Daniel nodded, making a note to talk to Janet about it. "Ready to take a few laps?"

"I don't want to get out of bed," she told him grumpily.

"Okay," he agreed, "Want me to read to you?" A darkness fell over her features. Daniel hurriedly changed the subject before she could brood about her disability. "Or we can play chess? Or listen to music?"

"Daniel," she harshly interrupted then sighed. "I just want to be alone." Daniel nodded before remembering she couldn't see it.

"Okay," he whispered, squeezing her knee. "If you need anything," he trailed off.

"I'll be fine." He gave knee her one final squeeze before leaving for his own quarters. Maybe he would catch up on his sleep too.

* * *

><p>"Daniel says you didn't eat breakfast," Jack said when Sam finally opened her eyes.<p>

"Sir?" she said groggily. "What are you doing here?"

"Lunch and PT," he told her, "but I'll let you pick the order."

"Raincheck?" she asked wearily, her eyes already closing as she struggled to find a comfortable position. Her headache was already acting up.

"Nope," he said cheerily. "We need to get you on your feet. Doctor's orders."

"Fine," she acquiesced, knowing it would be easier to just humor him rather than argue. She struggled to free herself from the blankets, feeling the familiar anger rise in her when she felt his helping hand on her elbow. She was barely able to finish one lap, leaning heavily on her bed by the time she was done. "Couple more laps Carter."

"No!" she said angrily, struggling to get back into the bed. "Just leave me alone!"

"I don't leave people behind Carter."

"Like you stayed with me on the Alpha site," she spat. She felt slightly guilty for throwing that barb at him but ruthlessly pushed the guilt away. Why couldn't they just leave her alone for a few minutes? She didn't wait for the sound of his retreating footsteps before the darkness took her away.

* * *

><p>"She's never been like this before," Daniel spoke to the assembled group. Janet had been unsurprised when all of SG-1 came barging into her infirmary. Teal'c took his place by her bedside while Jack and Daniel followed her into her office. She could see her friend starting to go downhill, her irritation and anger obvious to her. The withdrawal they had all been expecting had suddenly crashed into them. She knew Sam was starting to push them away.<p>

"It's a lot for anyone to take in all at once," Janet reminded them as she finished her work. "Being captured and repeatedly tortured then being unexpectedly rescued is more than most people can take. Add to that brain surgery, the possibility of a permanent disability, and sarcophagus withdrawal. I think she's entitled to a few bad days." She put her pen down. "I remember you had bad days too," she told them.

"It's more than that," Jack told her. "I know what sarcophagus withdrawal feels like. I know what Baal's hospitality feels like. This is more than that." Janet sighed.

"She's going through withdrawal. You can't take anything she says personally." She let them digest that for a minute. "Maybe Sam just needs a little space." Jack and Daniel nodded just as Teal'c cried out.

"I require assistance!" They raced into the room to find Teal'c desperately trying to keep Sam's convulsing body in check.

"Lorazepam!" Janet cried out as Jack and Daniel rushed to help the Jaffa. A nurse handed her the medicine which she quickly injected into Sam's arm. A few seconds later Sam calmed down. The guys were pushed aside as nurses swarmed the scene, attaching Sam to the same life saving devices she had just escaped from. Janet pulled out her penlight, checking the blonde's pupil reaction, before remembering she hadn't had any reactions for a while. "Prep her for an MRI!" she ordered before turning on the men standing in the corner. "I'll find you later," she told them, relieved when Teal'c led the men out into the hall.

* * *

><p>Sam again found herself floating between existences. Something was different this time though, and the fear she usually left behind followed her. She could feel the pull of her body, but it was wrong. The strong connection she always counted on had weakened. She briefly wondered if the connection would be strong enough to pull her back, but released her worry as she became one with the universe.<p>

* * *

><p>"What happened?" Hammond demanded as soon as Janet had joined them in the briefing room.<p>

"There has been significant swelling of her brain," she told them, pulling out several scans and passing them around the room. "The swelling put pressure on her spinal cord resulting in her seizing."

"Why didn't you notice it before?" Jack asked darkly. "Haven't you done almost daily scans?"

"Yes," she admitted, "and we never saw anything that suggested her brain was swelling." She turned her attention back to Hammond. "Normally when a brain injury is present, a section of the brain will swell around the injury. It's the irregularity between that section and the rest of the brain that we see. In Sam's case there was no irregularity. Her entire brain is swelling."

"Why?" Hammond asked.

"We don't know why," she admitted.

"What do we do now?" Daniel asked.

"I've drilled a small hole in her skull to help relieve the pressure," she told them, "and Dr. Van Densen is on her way back as we speak. But we need to figure out what's causing the swelling in the first place." She looked desperately toward SG-1, but they simply hung their heads in despair. They didn't have any more information they could give to the doctor.

"I know you're doing all you can," Hammond reassured her. "Keep me informed of any changes. Dismissed."

* * *

><p>"This isn't supposed to be happening," Daniel said as Jack joined him in the observation room. They watched Teal'c as he calmly spoke to her from her bedside. Janet had moved her into one of the isolation rooms as a precautionary measure. She had lapsed into a coma. She had never looked so small. "We should be rejoicing, talking of celebrations and planning her escape from the infirmary. Not watching her fight for her life again."<p>

"Doc's not giving up," Jack told him. "We can't either." Sandy had arrived the other night and they immediately took Sam in for another surgery. They had managed to relieve her intracranial pressure momentarily, though Jack could see the numbers slowly inching up from one of the many monitors around her bed. "Still no word from Jacob."

Daniel snorted. "If the situation is as bad as we think it is I doubt they are rushing to give him our message. It was pure luck he was on the base last time." Jack turned away from the glass.

"I'm gonna go get something to eat before it's my turn. Want anything?" Daniel shook his head.

"I'm just gonna wait here." Jack nodded, giving his the younger man a quick squeeze on his shoulder as he left.

* * *

><p>"Do you have the latest scan?" Sandy asked.<p>

"Here," Janet slid the folder across her desk before standing and heading to the coffee maker. "Coffee?" she asked wearily.

"No thank you," she said, studying the pictures before her. "What if this is a natural phenomenon?"

"What?" Janet asked, reaching for the folder.

"All these areas of the brain are normally dormant," Sandy told her, pointing to several areas on the scan. "Humans use only a very small portion of their brain capacity. What happens when more and more of our brain turns on? Is this what that is going to look like? What if this is just the next evolutional step for our species?"

"Not if it kills us," Janet countered. "Unless our skull evolves to accommodate these changes no one will be getting this high of brain function for a long time."

"True," Sandy conceded, "but I would like to know why it's doing it. I've never seen the brain laid out so clearly. Think of how much we could learn if we could study it."

"We need to stop it before it kills an innocent woman," Janet said darkly.

"I know," Sandy said quickly, "it's just hard to keep my curiosity in check with these kinds of readings. I promise I am going to do everything I can to help Sam." Janet nodded wearily and put her head down on the desk. She remembered her own fascination with the discoveries that came from the Stargate, even the troublesome ones. Many things she continued to study after the danger had been contained, foreign diseases and viruses being her specialty.

"What do you mean," she asked at her sudden thought, "that you have never seen the brain so open?"

"The brain is an incredibly complex thing crammed into a space smaller than a basketball. We've built super computers the size of office buildings that can't even come close to what the brain is capable of, but it's so crammed we have barely scratched the surface of its understanding." She looked at her friend. "Why?"

"What if this isn't natural," she asked, gesturing to the scans laid out between the two doctors. "What if Anubis did this to her deliberately?"

"Why would he do that?" Sandy asked. "He's been keeping her alive."

"He's been resurrecting her when she died," she countered. "There is a difference." She closed her eyes thinking furiously. "We've assumed that this swelling is a result of the mind probe, but what if it is really a preparation for the probe. You said her brain is more open now. What if the probe needs that openness to function?"

"The mind probe?" Sandy asked. "But Jonas had the procedure done on him and there was no sign of any swelling. No signs of any complications whatsoever."

"Jonas told us the procedure only lasted a few hours. It took several days for Sam to begin showing symptoms. Plus Jonas's procedure was completed. By all accounts Sam's never was. It never worked."

"So the final step would be to undo whatever caused the brain to swell in the first place?" Sandy asked, elated until she realized one important thing. "But if that's true we still don't know what Anubis did to cause her brain to swell in the first place. Until we figure that out a countermeasure will be all but impossible."

"We have the scans we took of Jonas after his encounter," she said, paging one of her nurses. "Amy. We need Jonas Quinn's file please." The nurse nodded and returned a few minutes later with the large file.

"At least it's a place to start," Sandy said as they began tearing his file apart.

* * *

><p>"I'm sorry Sir," Janet said to General Hammond, striving to ignore the other men in the room. "We pulled Jonas's file, comparing his MRI after Anubis to Sam's."<p>

"And," he asked.

"Jonas showed the same swelling that Sam has now, but his was already decreasing." She turned including the rest of SG-1 now. "We're fairly certain her condition is a sort of preparation for the mind probe, but we have no idea how to stop it."

"What's her prognosis doctor?" Hammond asked.

"Sam mentioned the headaches she had after Anubis used the mind probe only went away after she was revived in the sarcophagus. I was hoping Baal and his Jaffa had more to do with that than Anubis did, but it appears I was wrong. The only thing I can do is keep her comfortable and hope her body stabilizes on its own." The sounds of an incoming wormhole interrupted their conversation. Hammond excused himself to deal with the situation, leaving Janet alone with SG-1. "I'm sorry," she told them.

"There's nothing you can do?" Jack asked, the anger that had been in his eyes the last few days leaving in favor of despair. Janet shook her head.

"What about another surgery?" Daniel asked. Sandy had just taken Sam for another one to relieve her intracranial pressure before everyone was called to the briefing room. Daniel had lost count of how many this made.

"The surgery is a stopgap measure Daniel," she told him gently, "and the human body is not designed to go through them at the rate Sam is. She's getting weaker with each one. Soon she won't survive. Besides, the pressure on her brain is continuing to build even with the surgeries. It's increasing stronger and faster each hour."

"Can't you put in tubes or something to drain the pressure?" Jack asked. Janet shook her head.

"We tried that. It didn't work. Nothing short of permanently removing large pieces of Sam's skull will expunge the pressure at the rate it is building. And the chances of her surviving that procedure are infinitely small."

"What if we were to procure the technology Anubis used on Major Carter?" Teal'c asked.

"Or a sarcophagus," Jack spoke up. He hated those things, but if it could save Sam's life he would go track one down. Maybe even get the politicians off their back if they gave it to the R&D guys after they were finished.

"Even if we were to get the technology right now, by the time it took us to figure out how it worked and how to reverse the process, it would still be too late for Sam. A sarcophagus would work but…"

"They are incredibly difficult to locate and extract," Teal'c finished for her. Janet turned, wiping furiously at her eyes before continuing.

"I'll keep doing everything I can."

"What can we do?" Daniel begged.

"Be there for her," Janet answered. "Stay with her. Talk to her. Let her know she's not alone. I have seen the mind do incredible things."

"You might want to hold that thought Doctor," Hammond said, returning to the briefing room with Colonel Reynolds. "Colonel, why don't you tell them what you've just told me."

"Yes Sir," Reynolds replied before turning to SG-1. "SG-3 was assigned the exploration of P5X-712. It is the remains of an abandoned Goa'uld fortress. SG-9 made the initial discovery several months ago. Periodically we've been sending UAV's to ensure the place is as abandoned as we thought." Jack nodded, remembering the details of the mission. Hammond and Jack had discussed it before they left for their first contact mission. Hammond had wanted Jack to finally pick a fourth member and was going to use an uninhabited exploration mission as the newly reformed SG-1's first mission. Sam's return had changed everything though and SG-3 got the mission instead. "Yesterday we were finally given the go ahead for a manned scouting trip. Only it wasn't as abandoned as we thought. There was Jaffa."

"Was anyone hurt?" Janet asked, automatically going into doctor mode. Reynolds shook his head.

"No ma'am," he told her. "It was a single unarmed Jaffa. The First Prime of Lord Yu."

"What did he want?" Jack asked. Teal'c cocked his head curiously.

"He said he was waiting for us. He said Lord Yu had given him a message he was to pass onto us." He handed a piece of paper to Fraiser. "Doesn't mean anything to us."

"Did he say anything else?" Jack asked as Daniel moved around to Janet's side and studied the paper along with her.

"Only that Lord Yu was given the information from someone else and that someone hoped it could help us. He didn't know who the information came from."

"Lord Yu has been sympathetic to the Tau'ri cause in the past," Teal'c remarked. "And Oshu is an honorable Jaffa."

"And how does a piece of paper help us?" Jack asked looking from Teal'c to Reynolds. Reynolds could only shrug. "Daniel?"

"It looks like a gas mixture for scuba divers," Daniel commented, not looking past the paper.

"How do you know that?" Jack asked the archeologist. Daniel shrugged.

"I took a semester to study underwater archeology. Found out I like digging in sand more than diving through water."

"A deep depth dive," Janet thought out loud, still studying the formula on the paper.

"Doc?" Jack asked.

"The pressure exerted on your body changes when you go diving. The pressure also affects the air you take down with you to breathe. After a certain depth, the normal atmospheric mixture isn't the best choice."

"The air we're breathing right now," Daniel told him after seeing Jack's blank look. "But we're nowhere near that pressure here."

"We can simulate it," Janet said, "and replicate that mixture for her to breathe. But there will still be pressure on her brain."

"Doctor?" Hammond asked.

"Excuse me Sir," she said apologetically, "but I need to go run some simulations." At his nod she rushed from the room.

* * *

><p>"I take it this is why those three guys were looking so hopeful?" Sandy asked as she joined Janet in her office. She picked up the papers Janet was working on.<p>

"How'd it go?" she asked, taking a much needed coffee break. Sandy shrugged.

"Her pressure's down again and she's still with us. That's about the best we can hope for." She had just finished her latest surgery with Sam. She had been slightly surprised when Janet didn't join her for the procedure, and suspicious when the three men waiting for her to finish weren't wallowing in their despair. She was worried about the newfound hope in their eyes and rushed right over to discuss it with Janet. Worried what their reactions would be when this last hope died. "What's this?"

Janet quickly told her of the meeting she had with SG-1 and about Colonel Reynolds surprise visit. She told Sandy the idea that had been forming in her head and handed her the paper Reynolds had given her.

"Let me get this straight," Sandy said after listening to Janet's idea and thinking about it for a few minutes. "You want to artificially compress Sam's body to a depth where this gas mixture will be effective? All based on a note you got from your enemies?"

"Actually I think we need to go deeper and put even more Oxygen in the mixture," Janet said. "I think we passed this depth a few days ago."

"You do know this is crazy right? The only reason we compress people that deep is because they were there already."

"And her brain already is. We would just be helping the rest of her body to catch up." Janet sighed. "If the swelling is caused by the normally dormant parts of her brain acting up like we think, I was wondering what was happening to the normally active parts? There's been very little activity from them, barely enough to classify her above brain dead. What if the dormant parts are taking all the Oxygen and nutrients from the active areas? What if they only need their own share of Oxygen to start rallying and forcing the dormant areas back down?"

"We've already tried adjusting the Oxygen concentration," Sandy reminded her. "It didn't have any change."

"Maybe the right mixture isn't enough? Maybe the right pressure is just as necessary as the right mixture." Janet sighed. "Our bodies react differently when put under the extreme pressures of diving. Maybe those different reactions are what's needed to reverse the process." Janet let her friend think about that for several minutes. "If you can think of anything else I am all ears." Sandy sighed, unable to think of anything.

"We should get going," she said, reaching for her own coffee cup. "I assume we want to do this sooner rather than later.

"Thank you," Janet said, grabbing the other woman's hand and squeezing gently.


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer and notes on chapter 1.

Enjoy.

* * *

><p>"It is extremely dangerous," Janet told the men who sat around her. Jack, Daniel, and Hammond all looked at her, Teal'c choosing to stay by Sam's bedside. "It's never been done before, probably never even been thought of."<p>

"What's new?" Jack quipped, not even bothering to open his folder.

"Normally a procedure like this would require the consent of the next of kin. With Jacob still unavailable it will be your decision Sir." She had already told them her plan. Gone over every aspect of it until she was sure they could probably do it themselves.

"What are the risks," Hammond asked, knowing if it was as simple as Janet hoped it would be she wouldn't be here asking for permission.

"Her body is incredibly weak now. She might not survive the compression process, let alone the decompression process. We have no way of knowing how her brain, which is under incredible pressure now, will react to compression. We still don't know if this is even going to work. And once we start, if anything were to go wrong we won't be able to pull her out."

"You think this is the best course of action Doctor?"

"It's the only course of action that we have available Sir." Hammond thought intently for a few moments.

"Very well Doctor. What do you need to proceed?"

Janet sighed. "We'll need to move Sam to the hyperbaric chamber at the Academy Hospital." Hammond nodded and Janet was glad for the foresight to put in the chamber in the early days of the SGC. Though it hadn't been used much, the SGC had thought of every possible contingency they might need when exploring the galaxy. "Also a doctor knowledgeable with decompression situations."

"I'll make a call," he told her. "Prepare Major Carter for transport. Dismissed."

* * *

><p>"Colonel O'Neill and Dr. Jackson are waiting for you inside Sir," one of the airmen said as they approached the Air Force Academy Hospital. They stopped at the curb long enough for him to get out, threw him a quick salute which he automatically returned, and then drove off. He paused, examining the absurdity of the situation for the millionth time.<p>

He was one of the doctors at the hyperbaric ward of the Bremerton Naval Hospital in Hawai'i. His love of the ocean and diving combining with his work as a physician left him incredibly knowledgeable and passionate about decompression sickness. He was the top in his field and was often called upon to consult with matters regarding diving or for the occasional emergency decompression therapy when accidents happened.

Early morning wake up calls were not unheard of for doctors, nor were top secret orders. When his phone rang just after midnight he and his wife took it in stride. He got dressed, kissed his wife on the cheek, checked into his children's rooms, and left the house just as the car was pulling up for him.

He was quietly thinking what situation had arisen that would need his specialty, and where it was that he was going. All his superior had told him was he would be briefed in the air. So intent was his musing that he almost missed the fact that they took the wrong turn. "The Navy airstrip is another ten miles," he reminded the young man driving him. He was not his usual driver.

"Yes Sir," the young man replied, "but we're not going to the navy airstrip." It took him a few minutes to realize that the young man was wearing an Air Force uniform, not the Navy one he was expecting. While it wasn't unheard of for the branches to share resources periodically, and was even more common in the Hawaiian Islands as every branch had multiple bases spread across the islands, it never happened in the dead of night. He watched as they pulled up to the gate and were immediately waved through. They didn't stop until they were on the tarmac, a fighter jet like none he had ever seen waiting for them.

"Dr. Chad Livingston?" The pilot held out his hand, which Chad numbly shook. "I'm Major Cameron Mitchell. I'm the pilot who is going to fly you to Colorado."

"Colorado?" Chad asked, finally being jerked out of his stupor.

"Yes Sir," Mitchell told him, "and time is of the essence. We have a flight suit waiting for you and can take off whenever you're ready." He nodded, letting himself be led away. A few minutes later he returned ready to go.

"I've never seen a plane like this," he commented as he was helped inside. Mitchell just nodded as he finished his pre flight checklist.

"It's an experimental plane," he told him as he got clearance to leave and taxied out onto the runway. "I gotta warn you though, she's got some kick." Chad was wondering what he meant when the plane shot off fast enough to knock him back into his seat. It was like nothing he had ever felt before. He didn't know how long he stayed like that, but was grateful when the pressure started letting go signaling they had stopped accelerating.

"What was that?" he mumbled.

"I did warn you," Mitchell smirked from ahead of him. "She's got speed and acceleration off the charts, not to bad maneuverability to."

"Experimental?" Chad confirmed.

"Don't worry Doc. Sam builds them good. She won't let you down." Cam chuckled at the mutterings coming behind him.

"So we're going to Colorado?" Chad asked trying to figure out how much longer he would have to endure this flight. It was by far the most uncomfortable flight he had ever taken.

"Yes Sir. And I'll have you there in a little over two and a half hours."

"Two and a half hours?" Chad gasped. "But it takes seven hours just to reach the mainland from the Hawaiian Islands." How could they cut the time down to a third?

"As I said Sir," Cam replied, "time is of the essence."

"I don't suppose you know what's going on?" he asked hopefully. Chad could sense the cheerful mood of his pilot disappear instantly.

"All I know is that a good friend of mine needs your help. They asked for volunteers to come pick you up and here I am." Chad didn't push the other man any more than that, though he got the feeling his pilot knew more than he was letting on. The constant shaking of the airplane left him slightly nauseous and he was concerned if he kept talking that he might let loose more than words. Instead he turned his attention to the night sky above him, watching as the stars streaked by. It was almost like he was exploring space. He thought idly about those times spent as a little boy who was sure he was going to fly through the stars.

"We're beginning our descent," Cam told him. He was surprised to find his entire journey had been spent reliving his childhood youth. He sighed and forced himself to focus on his mission. A few minutes later he stood on shaky legs as another car came to collect him from the tarmac. Chad sighed as he approached the front doors of the hospital, wondering what other surprises waited for him inside.

"Doctor Livingstone I presume?" He was met by two men, both wearing BDU's and one bearing the rank of Colonel.

"Never heard that one before," Chad quipped, momentarily forgetting where he was and who he was talking to. The Colonel didn't seem to mind, instead he stared at the doctor with a new sense of respect.

"Jack, don't be an ass." The other man criticized the Colonel as he held out his hand to Chad. "Daniel Jackson."

"Dr. Jackson?" he asks. Daniel nods. "Dr. Chad Livingstone. Nice to meet you."

"This is Colonel Jack O'Neill," he says, introducing his companion. Chad extends his hand which Jack reluctantly shakes. "Don't take it personally. Jack just really doesn't like doctors."

"Right," Chad says, having met with that same attitude too many times to take it personally. "So now do I find out why I am here?"

"Chad?" a third voice interjected. "Is it really you?"

"Chris," Chad said, unable to hide the relief at finally having something known. "How have you been?" The others turned and watched as Colonel Reynolds came walking down the hallway.

"I got this Jack," Reynolds said as he drew up with the group. Jack looked between Reynolds and Livingstone a few times before nodding, pulling Daniel down the hallway Reynolds just came up from.

"What's going on here Chris," Chad asked, desperate for some understanding. He and Chris had been roommates for four years at the Naval Academy before going their separate ways for their respective career paths. They had tried to stay in touch throughout the years, even though that amounted to little more than Christmas cards lately.

"I'm about to introduce you to a world that will blow your mind," he smiled, "and in return I pray to whatever real Gods there are that you find a way to help save ours." He pulled out a packet of non-disclosure forms.

* * *

><p>"So we've been exploring other planets for the last seven years?" Chad asked. He had readily signed the non-disclosure forms and, after a quick inquiry with the nurse at the reception desk, Reynolds had led him through the building to the room where the hyperbaric chamber was located. He vaguely remembered the request for this piece of equipment. He had been surprised when he was ordered to assemble a team to install and train local medical personnel on its use. At the time he wondered why Colorado would need any decompression units, but figured they were simply going to use it for experiments.<p>

"We've even brought back a few goodies we find out there," Reynolds told him, "though it's taken a bit longer than we thought to get to the point of general distribution."

"Like what?" Chad challenged, looking up from the valves he was checking.

"Well you know that anesthetic that came out a few years ago?" Chad nodded.

"That drug was amazing. No one had seen anything like it. And the drugs that company have been coming up with are truly revolutionary." He paused for a second as realization flooded through him. "You mean they're all alien in origin?"

"Yep," Reynolds grinned. "But medicine isn't the only thing we're bringing back. Thanks to our work there have been improvements in communication technology, satellite imaging, clean power generating technology. Almost anything you can think of we are working to improve."

"Why haven't I heard of any of this?" he asked. Reynolds shrugged.

"It's a lot easier to give stuff to US military bases for trial runs and have them not ask questions. It's a lot harder to give it to the world." He paused for a second. "You rode in on another toy we've been developing from our missions."

"The experimental plane?" he asked. "You might want to go back to the drawing board for that one. The flight sucked."

"That's because it's not really designed for atmospheric flight."

"Outer space?" Chad asked awestruck after he realized exactly what Reynolds had implied. Reynolds just grinned. He was about to say something else when someone entered the room.

"She's being returned to her room in a few minutes."

"Thank you Dr. Jackson." Daniel nodded and left the room. Chad could feel the carefree attitude of his friend fall apart. He triple checked all the components on the chamber before nodding to Reynolds.

"It's ready," he told him. Reynolds nodded before heading to the door, Chad just a few steps behind him.

"Chad," he said pausing at the door, "Major Carter is a good friend and a damn fine officer. She has saved this planet more times than I can count, and saved my ass more times than I care to remember. The base was lost when we thought she died. I don't think any of us can go through that again.

"I'll do everything I can. I promise." Reynolds nodded and quickly led them to the upper floor of the building. Several armed guards were stationed outside the elevator, the hallway, and outside her room. Chad chuckles as he thinks it is probably easier to get inside the White House than it is to get inside this one hospital room. The humor dies when he finally does make it into the room and gets his first glimpse of the woman in the bed.

"Doctor," Jack acknowledges from his position at her bedside. Chad sees Daniel and a third dark skinned man that he didn't recognize were also crowding around her bedside. Daniel tosses him a wave while the third man turns to stare at the doctor. Chad tries not to shrink under the stare and instead starts studying the readouts of the woman.

"There must be some mistake," he blurted out when he came to the ICP reading. "This woman needs brain surgery, not decompression therapy."

"Actually she just finished brain surgery." Chad turned toward the new voice. "Janet Fraiser. I'm Sam's doctor." She held out her hand which he immediately shook it. "Her neurosurgeon is freshening up. She will join us soon." She studied him for a few minutes. "What exactly have you been told?"

"Only that I was needed to supervise a radical decompression therapy treatment." He looked back to Sam. "On her?" he asked. Janet nodded.

"Let's head back to my office and I will fill you in on as many details as I can," Janet said leading Chad out of the room. He felt slightly calmer when Reynolds fell into step with them.

"Don't worry Doc," he told Janet as they walked to her office. "He's the best." Chad didn't know whether to be proud or worried by that statement. He suddenly felt unsure for the first time in a long time. What if he couldn't do what these people needed him to do? "He wouldn't be here if he wasn't." Reynolds unquestionable confidence restored his composure. He took a deep breath, promising himself he would do everything in his power to help that woman, before following Janet into her office.

* * *

><p>Chad looked up from the readings he was studying. Thankfully they had stayed steady for the last thirty minutes. "Now we wait," he said to the other people in the room. Sandy snuck a glance at the unit before studying her own readouts. He thought back to earlier that day when he learned exactly had happened and what the plan was.<p>

Major Carter had been experimented on by alien technology which was causing her brain to swell. Their only hope was to introduce a gas mixture that would only work at depths of 1000 feet or greater, the mixture would be too toxic at normal atmospheric pressures. He wasn't entirely sure where they had gotten that particular gas mixture, let alone the idea for this treatment, and they were extremely secretive when he asked, so eventually he simply decided to simply go with it. Chad took a moment to add his own concerns to General Hammond, the one who would ultimately make the final decision. After listening to his concerns Hammond had officially ordered the procedure. Chad had the feeling the decision was made before he even got there.

All three doctors helped prepare Sam for her trip. Several nurses had volunteered to go in with Sam, since the unit was large enough to accommodate more than one person. All three men of SG-1 had also volunteered to go with her. Ultimately Janet had decided she would be the one to accompany Sam into the hyperbolic chamber. The risk of problems arising was just too high to let anyone else do it.

The blonde's pressurized descent had gone more smoothly than anyone guessed it would, Janet only needing to intercede a few times during the long procedure. A few times the monitors would blare out in alarm, leaving both Janet and Sandy jumpy, but Chad would simply adjust the level of the different gasses and Sam's vitals would stabilize again. "How are you doing Janet?" Chad asked as he watched the time tick by.

"Great," she told him. A quick glance at the second monitor confirmed this. Janet's life signs were vibrant compared to Sam's.

"We're almost ready to start the new mixture," he told her. Janet nodded and grabbed her own oxygen mask. Sam's blend was a bit more oxygen rich than they were comfortable giving her.

"Ready," she told them through her intercom in her mask. She took her position by Sam's bed, watching the monitors as she heard the soft woosh as the new gas mixture was released. She watched Sam's face for any sign of distress, happy when she didn't see any.

"Her ICP is rising again," Sandy said, studying her monitors, "but it's not nearly as high as I thought it would be." Janet nodded, happy that one of their fears turned out pointless.

It wasn't until several hours later that the readings changed. At first Sandy blinked, staring tiredly at the monitor unsure if she was really seeing what she thought she was. She called out to Janet, who had taken a catnap inside the unit, to confirm her readings. Sam's intracranial pressure was finally falling.

* * *

><p>Sam flew through galaxies, witnessed the birth of planets and the death of suns, and was contentedly following the path of a comet when she realized something was wrong. Her body, which she had long ago thought she lost, was calling for her again. She was so startled she didn't realize the comet she was following fell from its path into the planet below. Sam could only watch as fires from the impact flew up. But they didn't return to the planet like they should. Instead they flew toward her, destroying everything in their path.<p>

Desperate to escape, she turned and started flying the other way, only to be stopped short when flames erupted before her. She turned again and again, only to have the ever encroaching fire surround her. Disoriented, she closed her eyes and focused on the pull of her body. It was so weak, so fragile she feared the fire would consume it.

Daniel. She jerked her eyes open trying to find her teammate. She heard other voices too; Teal'c and the Colonel, but she could not find them in the raging inferno. Closing her eyes again she listened as hard as she could, feeling the familiar pull. She trusted these men with her life. Instantly she knew what she needed to do. Keeping her eyes closed, she gave up control, letting her mind follow these three men that she would move heaven and earth for.

* * *

><p>Janet stirred as something tugged at her consciousness. She opened her eyes, instantly remembering why she was in the hyperbolic chamber. She glanced at the monitors, trying to figure out what had woken her.<p>

"Janet?" Daniel asked from his position by the intercom. It had been five days since their desperate plan to save Sam's life had started. Despite all their misgivings and uncertainty it looked like it was working. Janet wasn't the only one to breathe a sigh of relief when Sam's ICP had finally started to drop. They had kept her at that depth for several days, watching the pressure in Sam's skull drop, until Sandy and Chad thought it would be safe to slowly start bringing them back up to normal atmospheric pressure.

Chad had lowered the pressure much more slowly than he normally would have, concerned that Sam's ICP would increase again, but it hadn't. It would make for a longer stay in the chamber, but Janet wasn't worried about that. If a little discomfort on her part was the price for seeing this crazy plan of theirs work she was more than ready to pay it.

"Janet?" Daniel asked again. "What's wrong?" Janet looked at him through the glass window, shrugging in response. The guys had taken to reading in turn to Sam and Janet. Janet was extremely grateful for the gesture.

"Janet?" Sandy rushed over, grabbing the intercom from Daniel. She studied her readouts carefully, happy to find nothing was out of the ordinary. Janet meanwhile looked down to the bed where she had been resting her head. Just below her friend's hand. She grabbed that hand impulsively, giving it a quick squeeze. She was unprepared for the weak squeeze Sam gave back.

"Sam?" she asked, ignoring the others for a moment. "Sam can you squeeze my hand?" She heard Daniel's triumphant whoop as Sam did what she asked her to do. She continued to encourage the blonde and was rewarded when Sam opened her eyes briefly. She looked up through tear filled eyes to find the rest of SG-1 clustered around the window. Looking back at her friend she realized Sam was already asleep again, but this time it was a healing sleep. She closed her eyes and followed her friend into dreamland.

It would be several more days before they could leave the chamber. Sam had awoken a handful of other times. Each time she was a little more aware and able to stay awake a little longer. Janet calmly told her what was happening, and the guys were constantly talking to her through the intercom. When they were finally released she knew nothing would stop the guys from being at her bedside. Janet indulged herself with a long, hot shower before crashing on the softest mattress she could find.

* * *

><p>Sam awoke to the sounds of her teammates discussing something. They were discussing some information they had obtained off world, but the details were too confusing for Sam to focus on. Instead she simply let their voices calm her. She opened her eyes, staring around the dark room.<p>

"Sam?" Daniel asked, instantly noticing her open eyes. He came over, putting a comforting hand on her shoulder as she turned her head in his direction. "Can you see me?"

"No," she forced out over the sandpaper in her mouth, gratefully accepting the water that appeared in front of her.

"That's okay," Jack reassured her. "You're going to be okay." She mumbled something, unable to resist the pull back into dreamland. The last thing she remembered were three pairs of hands anchoring her to reality.

* * *

><p>"Don't you ever sleep Teal'c?" Sandy asked as she entered the room.<p>

"My meditation is sufficient to refresh me," he replied. He stepped back to allow the doctor access to Sam's bed. She gently checked Sam's incisions and her readouts. Her gentle ministrations were enough to wake the sleeping woman.

"Morning Major," she greeted her. She raised the head of the bed and helped Sam take a sip of water.

"Thanks," she whispered, her hand automatically reaching out for something. Teal'c quickly slipped in and grabbed her hand, squeezing gently.

"How are you feeling?" Sandy asked?

"Fine," Sam replied. Sandy just sighed.

"Do you remember what happened?" she asked.

"Bits and pieces," Sam told her. "Where's Janet?"

"Doctor Fraiser is getting some well deserved rest," Sandy told her, finishing her checkup. "Do you want me to get her?"

"No," Sam shook her head then winced. "Just thought she would be here for some reason."

"Well you seem to be healing nicely again," Sandy joked lightly. "Now don't take this the wrong way Major, but I never want to see the inside of your head ever again." Sam looked confused while Teal'c merely arched his eyebrow. "Take care Major. Teal'c." With one last look she turned and left the room.

"Am I missing something?" she asked.

"Indeed," Teal'c told her. She sighed, knowing the Jaffa wasn't going to tell her. She shifted position, trying to find a comfortable spot and sighed in pleasure when she found it.

"Where's everyone else?" she asked.

"I believe they are procuring nourishment," he told her. "O'Neill spoke of a party, though it was to remain secretive. I believe O'Neill mentioned cake."

"I'll try to act surprised," she told him smiling at the thought. She could feel sleep starting to pull her back down.

"Do you require anything?" he asked, turning serious once more.

"Stay with me?" she asked softly. He tightened his grip on her hand.

"Indeed."


	8. Chapter 8

I want to say thank you to everyone who read and reviewed the story. Hopefully everyone finds the journey as entertaining and fun as I did.

I sincerely hope everyone enjoys this last chapter, which will bring this story to a close.

Disclaimer and notes on chapter 1.

Enjoy.

* * *

><p>"I'll never be able to write a paper on this will I?" Chad asked Reynolds as they waited for the airman to bring his truck around. "This could be a radical new way of treating head injuries."<p>

"Well," Reynolds told him, "wait a few months and see the treatment in a dream. Begin a study, set up some trials and in a few years who knows." He looked up as Doctor Van Densen walked up. "Need a lift Doc?"

"No thank you Colonel. I don't want to intrude on your time. I know how hard it is to stay connected to long lost friends." They looked up as Jack's truck pulled up, Daniel carrying a stack of pizzas while Jack grabbed a cake. "Tell me that's not for who I think it is Colonel," she warned.

"Don't worry Doc," Jack reassured them. "We know Sam's not ready for pizza. But we thought we owed her a welcome back party."

"Pizza?" Daniel asked stopping by the group, "We brought enough for everyone. It's our way of saying thank you for all you did." The two doctors were apprehensive till Reynolds grabbed a few slices for himself.

"Thanks," he said around a mouthful of pepperoni. The doctors soon followed his lead, and they were soon mumbling their own thanks. Daniel gathered up the pizza and headed toward the elevator. Jack made to follow him before turning around.

"Hey Doc," Jack called out, waiting until both doctors were facing him. "Thanks," he said sincerely.

"You're welcome," Chad called out as he finished his pizza. Sandy nodded just as Reynolds truck pulled up.

"You must have made quite an impression," Reynolds said as he climbed in the truck. "You sure you don't need a ride Doc?" he asked again as Chad got into the truck.

"I'm sure Colonel." She turned to Chad. "It was a pleasure working with you Doctor."

"Likewise." He gave her a tiny wave as they drove away. A minute later her own car came for her. As she climbed in, she thought once more about the strange new world the Stargate opened up for her.

* * *

><p>"Tell me that is not what I think it is," Janet demanded as she entered Sam's hospital room. The smell of pizza invaded her halls, her nurses were munching contentedly, and Janet knew immediately who was to blame.<p>

"We saved some for you," Jack defended, pulling a covered plate from the nearly empty pizza boxes.

"You're forgiven," she said, biting into her own cheesy goodness.

"Something smells good," Sam said from her bedside.

"We're having a party," Jack said, moving over to her side. "Hungry?"

"A little," she admitted, for the first time in a long time. She opened her eyes to stare sightlessly around the room.

"We have cake," Jack commented. Janet glared at him. "Don't worry Doc." Teal'c bent over and retrieved a cup of blue jello. Janet nodded her approval and Teal'c carefully placed the cup in front of her. She ate slowly, giving the rest of them time to finish their pizza and cake.

"So, how are you feeling?" Janet asked as she finished her pizza and headed toward Sam. Sam quietly endured the same checks Sandy had just given her, grabbing her hand after she checked Sam's eyesight.

"Thank you," she told Janet quietly. "I don't remember much, but I remember you being there for me."

"Anytime," Janet replied. Janet finished making her notes before yawning loudly. "I really need to get some sleep. I'll be in my office if you need me." The guys waved goodbye as Sam slowly closed her eyes. They quickly discarded their empty pizza boxes and picked up from their impromptu party.

"Guys," Sam said quietly, making everyone jump. They all thought she had gone back to sleep. They quickly moved back to her bedside. Jack and Daniel grabbed her hands while Teal'c put his hand on her knee. "I don't remember much about what happened, but I do remember trying to push you away. I'm sorry for what I said to you." She opened her eyes staring blankly before her. "Sir?" He quickly squeezed her hand and she twisted her head to look in his direction. "I didn't mean what I said."

"Carter," he began before pausing. After a minute he started again. "I know what Baal's idea of a good time feels like, and I know what the sarcophagus withdrawal feels like. I know sometimes you just want some time alone to figure things out." He ran his free hand through his hair struggling for the words he wanted. "We haven't been very good about giving you space when you need it. So we'll make you a deal. We promise to be more supportive and understanding when you need you time, but you have to promise not to shut us out when you need our support."

Daniel and Teal'c added their agreement. Jack could see tears forming in her eyes and thought he had said too much. "We'll let you get some sleep." He began to pull his hand away when her grip tightened.

"I need you guys to understand something," she told them. "What I said in the prison; about not blaming you. I meant every word of it."

"What happened Sam?" Daniel asked, scooting up to hold Sam loosely in his arms. She took a deep breath and began to tell them exactly what happened to her in the prison.

* * *

><p>"Morning Carter," Jack announced as he entered the room.<p>

"Morning?" Sam asked. "Wasn't that the evening news Daniel was watching earlier?"

"Yeah well," he shrugged, "someone once told me that time was relative. How was the movie marathon?" He headed over to the drapes, which were closed to avoid glare on the screen.

"Different," she admitted. "The sounds of Star Wars."

"And where is Teal'c?" he asked.

"Janet finally convinced him to get some real sleep. She threatened to make him stop after the first three if he didn't go to bed."

"Sneaky," he admired, pulling back the drapes to let the last remainder light into the room. He turned back at Sam's sharp cry. "Carter?"

"Sir?" she answered automatically, her eyes tearing up. Jack quickly drew the drapes again before hitting the call button. A few minutes after Jack hit the button Janet ran into the room.

"What?" she asked before seeing Sam. She was rocking back and forth slightly, her hands pressed tightly across her eyes. "What happened?" she asked.

"I opened the drapes," Jack told her. She looked between Jack and the window before pulling out her penlight.

"Sam? Can you tell me what happened?" Sam merely shook her head. "Can you open your eyes?" Sam tried her best to comply with Janet's requests, but the sudden pain shooting through her head was making that difficult. Sensing her trouble Janet quickly administered more morphine to the stricken woman. After a few minutes Sam's breathing returned to normal as she slipped into sleep.

"Did she just respond to light?" Jack asked in a soft voice.

"I can't say for sure," Janet told him, not wanting to get his hopes up if the answer turned out to be no. "We'll have to wait until she's awake to check her neurological responses." She reached over and checked her pupils. "I'm still not getting any reaction." She sighed, running her hand over her eyes. "Let's keep her room dim just in case." Jack nodded, pulling up the seat next to Sam's bed.

* * *

><p>Jack looked up at the knock on his door. He looked at the couch where Sam was slumped, wondering if she was awake. The dark glasses she was wearing made it very difficult to tell sometimes. The person knocked again but she didn't stir. He quickly got to his feet, not wanting to disturb her. He was not ready to find Jacob standing at his doorstep.<p>

"Should I be concerned," he asked sternly, "when I asked the airman to bring me to Sam and he brought me here?"

"Nice to see you too Jacob," Jack told him, opening his door so the other man could come in. "I'm the only one with a spare room. If it makes you feel better Daniel and Teal'c are staying here too."

"Slightly," he admitted.

"Sam's sleeping in the other room." Jacob nodded, stepping to the door and stopping to watch his daughter. Jacob quietly went into the room while Jack made his way to the kitchen, letting Jacob have some quality time with his daughter.

"Is she supposed to still be so tired?" he asked joining Jack in the kitchen a few minutes later. It had been more than a month since they brought her back. Jack shook his head.

"Cassie was just here," he told him. "She was a bit over enthusiastic." He headed to the refrigerator. "Want anything to drink?"

"I'll take a beer," he said, taking a seat at the table. Jack grabbed a couple, helping himself to a beer as well. He handed one to the older man, taking a giant swig of his own drink. "So is this a social call?"

"Not exactly," Jacob admitted. "There's a new rumor that has been floating around the last few days. Something about a weapon that can kill Anubis's Kull warriors. All the System Lords are trying to take credit for the discovery." Jack snorted.

"Now that we got it working they all want to be friends again?" Jack asked sarcastically.

"Officially the Tok'ra are reevaluating their position," Jacob told him. "Unofficially I think they're pouting because you got your toy to work before they got theirs."

"Sam fixed it you know," Jack said quietly. "A few days after you left. She heard someone talking about how they couldn't get it to work again. She asked for copies of the research and there were boxes at her bedside within the hour."

"Dr. Fraiser allowed this?" Jacob asked. Jack shrugged, downplaying the pressure the doctor was under at the time.

"We thought it would be good for her to have some closure." He left the rest unsaid. The need of the weapon allowed them to bend the rules a bit. "I made sure everyone, including Carter, knew that this was optional and she had every right to never touch that damn weapon again. It took a few days for her to open that box, a few more for her to actually look through it, well get Daniel to look through it for her, but once she did she solved the problem in less than a day."

"She did the same thing on the Alpha site," Jacob told him.

"She was the reason the attack was called off," Jack admitted. "When she was trapped under the desk and the Kull saw her, the Jaffa leading the raid decided her capture would be enough to satisfy Anubis. That's why the attack stopped and the Al'kesh left. That's why anyone at the Alpha site survived." Jack had a faraway look in his eye as he absently played with dew drops that formed on the outside of his bottle. "When she first was brought to Anubis he was so pleased he handsomely rewarded the Jaffa that led the mission. He figured he could download all her knowledge, develop a suitable defense from the information she had on the weapon, and use the remaining knowledge to destroy Earth, the Tok'ra, and the Free Jaffa.

"When the mind probe didn't work he was furious. The formerly honored Jaffa became her cellmates, often taking punishments in her place as they made their way back to the Alpha site. When they got there and saw the signs of our cleanup he was so irate he banished the entire ship down to the planet except for his Kull warriors and Sam. That's when he handed her over to Baal, to try his own special brand of inquisition. But she knew we were out there and knew she couldn't give up the only chance we had. It gave her a reckless strength and she fought back the only way she knew how to."

"By not letting them have the one thing they wanted more than anything else." Jack nodded. "I heard she took a few pages our of your book."

Jack shrugged but couldn't help the smile on his face. "She had a good teacher."

"Any idea why the probe didn't work on her?"

"Several theories going around about that. I doubt we will ever know why it didn't work." Jacob was silent for a moment, studying the man before him.

"How's she doing?" Jack thought for a minute, his smile slowly fading.

"She still had headaches and her appetite still isn't what Doc Fraiser would like. Doc Fraiser has cleared her for light duties next week, and hopes that in a month or so…"

"Jack," Jacob interrupted, "I don't mean her physical health. I mean how is she doing?" In fact Jacob had rushed down to find Dr. Fraiser as soon as George had told him what happened after he left. Jack sighed, peeling back the corner of his label.

"She had good days and bad. Getting her eyesight back is helping." He paused for a minute before continuing. "She still has nightmares," he told him. "She doesn't want us to know, but she still has them."

"She'll get through this," Jacob said confidently.

"She's doing much better than I was," Jack grudgingly admitted. "She's letting us help her." He was quiet for a few minutes. "She doesn't know if she wants to stay on SG-1," he says quietly, like saying those words would make them true. Jacob sighed.

"George told me about the note. Any idea who sent it?"

"I was kinda hoping you did," Jack admitted.

"If I had known what was happening nothing would have been able to stop me from coming back," Jacob told him. "I wouldn't have needed to send a note." Jack nodded his agreement.

"I guess we'll never know," Jack said, not surprised at all. They spent the next few minutes discussing who the note could have come from until they heard sounds from the other room.

"Hey Carter," Jack said as Sam slowly walked into the room, hands stretched in front of her. Jacob was glad to see her only stumble a little bit. "Look who dropped by." Sam stared a few minutes at her father before a big smile broke out on her face.

"Dad."

"Hey kid," he said, moving over to give her a big hug. "I hear you had quite the adventure since the last time I was here."

"I really don't remember much of it," she told him.

"I'll leave you two alone," Jack told them. He headed back into the living room, turning on the latest episode of the Simpsons while father and daughter talked quietly in the kitchen. A knock at the door alerted him to the arrival of Daniel and the dinner he was supposed to be bringing back. "Dinner," he called out as he opened the door. Daniel and Teal'c were juggling bags of Chinese take-out.

"Hey Jacob," Daniel greeted as he put the bags on the kitchen table. "We brought extra if you'd care to join us."

"Don't mind if I do," he said, reaching for a plate. Soon everyone was enjoying their dinner. "So what's going on at the SGC?"

"There's a rumor that the President is ordering a documentary to be made," Daniel said.

"It's an election year isn't it?" Jacob asked. "I can't believe I forgot about that."

"How much change can a new President affect?" Daniel asked again. "I mean, the military had survived new administrations for years."

"The top secret clearance of the SGC works against it Daniel," Sam told him. "It's the public scrutiny that provides some measure of continuity for military programs. The President can do whatever he wants without the general public knowing. He can shut us down tomorrow if he wants to."

"That's not very reassuring," he replied. Jack chuckled.

"I wouldn't worry too much Daniel," Jack reassured the younger man. "The threat is too real for us to be shut down. Plus we have given the Air Force a lot of nifty little toys to play with. Politicians love toys."

"Well, they're vetting possible cameramen as we speak. Nothing has been decided yet, but Hammond doesn't want to chance another NID incursion." Daniel and Teal'c finished their dinner and rose to their feet. "We need to get back to the mountain. We ship out early. Night Sam, Jack, Jacob." Teal'c bowed his head and followed Daniel out of the house.

"Archeological dig," Jack explained. "You're more than welcome to spend the night Jacob."

"Actually," Jacob said as he started clearing away his dishes, "I was hoping to steal Sam for a little trip to San Diego." Sam looked unsure of herself. She glanced at Jack.

"Go with him," he encouraged. "A change of scenery will be good for you." She nodded resolutely.

"Sounds fun," she reluctantly agreed.

"Great. I think I'll take you up on your offer Colonel and we'll leave first thing tomorrow." Jack nodded as Sam excused herself for bed.

"I'll take the couch. You can take the bed." Jacob nodded, heading toward the bedroom taking a moment to check on his daughter before turning in for the night.

* * *

><p>"Hey Carter," Jack greeted as he entered her lab. "Have a good vacation?"<p>

"Yes Sir," she replied. Jack was happy to see more color in her complexion than she had when she left. She also seemed more at ease. It seemed the family vacation had done her a world of good.

"Jacob get off okay?"

"He left a few hours ago," she told him, turning back to the strange device on her tabletop. "General Hammond was authorized to let him take a few of the weapons back with him. The Tok'ra will be busy for a while."

"Good for them," he said, managing to mostly keep the dislike out of his voice. "SG-1 has a new mission," he said, waving casually at his gear in an explanation. "Recon. Should be pretty boring."

"Sir," she interrupted, "I don't think I'm ready yet, but I think I will be by the time Janet clears me."

"There's no rush," he tells her, "and I want you to be absolutely sure. Don't do this for anyone but yourself, not even for us. We'll stand by you no matter what, even if you never go out there again."

"Thank you Sir," she told him, relieved beyond words that her friends would follow her regardless of her choice. That support further enforced her resolve that she would never let them down. "So a recon mission huh?" she asked, falling into step with him as he made his way to the gate room.

"Daniel's excited. Lots of rocks for him to look at."

"Artifacts," Daniel corrected him automatically as he and Teal'c joined them at the Stargate. "Welcome back Sam," he reached out to give her a small hug, while Teal'c bowed his head in greeting. The Stargate wooshed to life, giving the room a bluish glow.

"Be careful," Sam told them as they headed up the ramp.

"Hey. It's a simple recon. What could possibly go wrong?" Teal'c frowned at him while Daniel just rolled his eyes.

"Now you did it," he complained.

"Did not," Jack countered.

"Colonel," Sam called out from her place at the base of the ramp. The whole team stopped and turned to face her. "Don't make me come through that gate and haul your ass back here."

"Yes Ma'am." Jack threw her a salute which she returned then as one they stepped through to another world. Sam stared at the wormhole from her place on the ramp. The light was hurting her still too sensitive eyes, but she didn't look away until the wormhole blinked out of existence. She turned, shared a glance with General Hammond, and slowly made her way back to her lab. The overwhelming need she just experienced when they left told her more than anything that she really did want to go back out there. A twinge of fear lingered at that thought, but she quickly brushed it away as she turned her attention back to the alien device she was studying, rubbing her aching eyes gently. Two more weeks until her next follow up appointment with Janet. Two more weeks until they learn if her eyesight is back completely. Two more weeks, she vowed, until she took her rightful place on SG-1.

The End


End file.
